Mourning
by No Guns Only Roses
Summary: A multi-chapter sequel to "Expendable" which is about how each character copes with the devastating death of Michelangelo. Will the family ever come back together and forgive Splinter? Or will they forever remain broken?
1. The Funeral

**Guest reviewer Faith wanted me to do a sequel. If you guys want to suggest something for me to write, then by all means do so! It helps!**

" _I choose Michelangelo."_

" _Very well. The decision has been made."_

" _MIKEY, NO! NO! NO!"_

" _DON'T TOUCH HIM, YOU MONSTER!"_

" _No, please. Mikey…"_

" _Guys, guys. It's okay. I_ want _Sensei to choose me. Please don't hate him for this."_

" _But..but Mikey…you-you can't do this to us."_

" _Bye, guys. I love…"_

Leo knelt protectively over the body that was wrapped in a white sheet. His brothers Raph and Donnie were sleeping on the other side of the van, but they sat far away from each other instead of being huddled together like they used to. All of the Turtles had dark circles under their eyes that were hidden by their masks. None of them slept the night before.

How could they when they've just lost their baby brother forever? What made matters worse was that Master Splinter _chose_ him to die.

Leo felt his anger rise up within him as he thought about his so-called "father". He didn't care that the Shredder gave him a sadistic choice. He should've just let the monster kill them all, because without Mikey, there was no family, anyway. It just wouldn't work without him. They'd all be better off dead than to live without their sunshine and voice of optimism in a dark and hopeless world.

And Leo knew that both Donnie and Raph felt the same way.

Donnie was almost like a robot, emotionless and unresponsive. He was alive, but at the same time, he wasn't. Raph, on the other hand, was an emotional mess, shedding tears in his sleep and shedding ever more tears when he was awake.

"Leo."

Said turtle looked up at the teenage girl who was sitting in the passenger seat of the van. "We're almost there," she whispered, being careful not to wake Raph or Donnie up.

Leo merely nodded and went back to watching over the large bundle on the floor.

April leaned back in her seat and closed her tired eyes, letting out a heavy sigh.

 _"We can't sit here and do nothing, Red! We gotta help them!"_

 _"I know, Jones! Believe me, I want to go in there and save them, too! But we have to wait until the Mutanimals get here! We can't take Shredder and his guys on our own!"_

 _The disgruntled hockey player kicked a nearby trashcan, spilling its contents onto the concrete floor. "We're running out of time! They could already be dead, for all we know! That's it! I'm going in!" Casey started to march toward the front door of the abandoned warehouse._

 _"Wait, Jones! Stop!" April grabbed him by the arm and tried to pull him back, but the teen wouldn't stop resisting. "Jones! Don't make me use my powers on you!"_

 _"Just go ahead and try it, Carrie!" Jones spat as he continued to fight back. "But_ I'm _going to save my best…!"_

 _Casey's voice trailed off and his face became pale as he saw the Turtles walking solemnly out of the building. Raph was gripping his shoulder and crying. Donnie stared blankly ahead as if he was in some kind of trance. And in Leo's arms was Mikey. He was bleeding all over Leo's arms and chest, and deep slashes covered his entire body. There was no doubt that this was the Shredder's work._

 _April put a mouth to her hand in shock and ran to the leader. "Leo, what happened to him?!" she screamed, reaching for Mikey but too afraid to touch him. "Is he going to make it?!"_

 _Leo said nothing and looked down at his brother with sad eyes._

 _"Leo, tell me that he's still alive!" April grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him. "PLEASE TELL ME!_ _ **LEO!**_ _"_

 _Leo only shook in his head in response. The kunoichi looked back down at the limp Turtle and saw a deep wound in his chest. She then realized that the Shredder had pierced his heart, and there was no denying that her little brother was truly gone. The reality of it all hit her like a ton of bricks, and she fell to her knees, put her head in her hands, and screamed in agony._

Casey glanced at April with sympathy. When she broke down completely that night, he immediately came to her side and did his best to comfort her, holding her in his arms and whispering to her. He was both surprised and disgusted that Donnie, who supposedly "loved" her and thought the world of her, didn't even attempt to comfort the weeping girl. He just continued to stare at them impassively.

The loss of Mikey had torn the once tight-knit family apart, and they were now only a group of strangers who barely even spoke to each other.

* * *

Mikey wouldn't be buried. They all agree to that. He deserved to have a much more honorable funeral. He'd have a funeral fit for kings.

Once they reached the farmhouse in North Hampton, they immediately went to work and constructed a funeral pyre made of wood. While the others worked outside, Leo remained with Mikey's body in the living room and made a paper crown similar to what Little Mikey wore in his world of imagination. He pulled back the sheet to reveal Mikey's face, which was now starting to rot and was greatly disfigured from Shredder's assault. But he didn't hesitate to kiss his brother's cold cheek and then he gently placed the crown upon Mikey's head.

"I…" Leo choked and covered his face with his arm. "I'm sorry that I let this happen, Mikey. As the oldest brother, I was supposed to protect you and yet…and yet I let that monster do this to you. I…I hope that you'll be much happier wherever you are right now. You deserve it."

He sniffled and chuckled bitterly. "What am I doing? I'm not even speaking to _you_. I'm just talking to a dead body. I must be going nuts." He then frowned and looked out the window, watching his brothers put the pyre together.

"If you're in Heaven, then we must surely be in hell."

* * *

They thought that they would have something to say, but nothing came out of their mouths as they stood in front of the pyre. There was complete silence.

Leo sighed and took out a match. "Let's just get this over with," he mumbled. He lit the match and started to walk toward the altar.

" **NO!** "

Raph suddenly shoved Leo away and hugged Mikey, sobbing greatly. April put a hand to her mouth and tried her best not to cry. Casey was near tears, himself, as he watched his best friend completely lose it. Donnie remained impassive as always.

Leo wasn't even moved and was instead aggravated. "Raph, move aside," he said rather coldly. "Crying won't bring Mikey back."

"No!" Raph continued to sob and hold onto Mikey, burying his face in his brother's shoulder.

"Raphael, I'm doing this with or without you at the pyre," Leo threatened. "If you don't move, then you'll burn along with Mikey."

Raph didn't even move. April and Casey were shocked by Leo's words and immediately went to action. They both grabbed a hold of Raph and tried to pull him away.

"NO! NO!" Raph fought back and wouldn't let go of his baby brother. "STOP IT! LEAVE US ALONE!"

"Raph, come on," April grunted as she struggled to loosen Raph's grip on Mikey.

Without warning, Leo elbowed Raph hard in the head and knocked him unconscious. Casey caught the Turtle before he fell to the ground and looked up at Leo in bewilderment. Leo didn't even look at them and lit another match.

"Get him out of here," he ordered.

As soon as the two teenagers pulled Raph away, Leo threw the match into the pile of wood. The funeral pyre was slowly consumed with fire along with Mikey's body.

Leo suddenly left in the middle of the ceremony and headed down the road, with April running after him.

"Leo, wait!" she called after him. "Leo, where are you going?"

"Back to the city," he said without stopping or looking back at her. "There's no point in me staying here any longer."

"But what about the others? Your brothers need you, Leo! You need to be there for them now more than ever!"

"It doesn't matter anymore."

"What…what do you mean, it doesn't matter anymore?"

Leo stopped in his tracks but his shell still faced her. "I'm saying no matter what I or anybody else does, we can never be a family again. Never. Mikey was the only one who really kept us together. Without him, it just...it just can't work."

April said nothing and continued to stare at Leo in disbelief.

The leader briefly looked back at her with dull, tired blue eyes before walking away. "Goodbye, April. Look after them."

* * *

Donnie sat at his old workbench in the barn, staring at the items laid out before him. Casey slowly and quietly walked through the entrance, looking at his friend in concern.

"Um, D?" he said softly. "You…you need anything? 'Cause if you do, just let me know, okay? 'Cause I'm here for you, man."

The despondent genius turtle said nothing and started to fiddle with the items. Casey sadly watched as Donnie went to work in a robotic manner.

* * *

Raph locked himself in the bathroom after he regained consciousness. By the time he woke up, the pyre had already burned to the ground and Mikey's body had been reduced to nothing but ashes. He felt cheated and betrayed by his so-called "family".

He sat on the edge of the bathtub and took out a sai, staring at its silver steel. The image of Mikey's body being covered in scars would not leave his mind. He wanted to feel the same pain that his baby brother felt moments before his death. It would make him feel…closer to him.

He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and pointed the tip of the sai at his cheek…

* * *

April sat down on the couch, hugging herself and feeling hopeless and scared. Leo had deserted his family, Donnie was like an emotionless machine, and Raph was just inconsolable and overwhelmed with grief.

She wanted to forgive Splinter for making such a terrible choice, and she understood that the Shredder forced him to choose. But still, to choose _Mikey_ of all people…

April knew that it sounded terrible, but she'd rather it had been Karai instead of Mikey. She could move on without Karai, and so could the rest of them. But Mikey was link that connected them together. Without him, the whole family would collapse. And right now she was watching that happen before her very eyes.

She put her head in her hands and cried for herself, for her family, and for Mikey.

 _Mikey, why did you have to go?_

* * *

"N-no! No, p-p-pleazzzz…"

Those were the last words that Baxter Stockman buzzed before his insect head was sliced off his human shoulders. He was among the poor souls that had suffered the wrath of Leonardo.

Tiger Claw, Rahzar, Fishface, Rocksteady…all of them had been slaughtered like pigs.

The last one standing was the Shredder, who didn't look the least bit intimated. In fact, he even chuckled at the stone-faced Turtle. "You are a fool to think that you can defeat me on your own. But not even the four of you put together would give you an advantage over me. Not the slightest."

The ninja Turtle merely smirked and said, "You're right. That's why I'll cheat."

Suddenly he threw some kind of vial at the Shredder, who immediately reacted by swiping a hand at the object, completely shattering it. The second he did, a purplish gas was released and the monster unwillingly inhaled it all.

His muscles suddenly stopped working and he was frozen stiff. No matter how hard his brain willed him to move, he could only stand with his arms hanging limp at his sides. He watched as Leo slowly walked toward him with a malicious smile on his face, his eyes white with hate and thirst for blood.

"One of Donnie's latest inventions. A special kind of gas that causes complete paralysis. We've never actually tested it on anyone, though. So you're the first to experience it, and as we can see from the results, it actually does work and is a complete success."

He got up nose to nose with the Shredder, pointing the tip of his katana at the mutant's blue beating heart. "I could pierce that rotten heart of yours right now," he whispered venomously. "But even that wouldn't be enough. I am going to make sure that you suffer like you never have in your last moments, the same way you made my brother suffer."

* * *

Bebop gripped his bleeding shoulder as staggered toward the exit, sobbing hysterically. He was lucky to escape with his life. He only wished that his dear friend Rocksteady could've escaped the Turtle's rampage as well. He was about to barge through the door when he heard a terrible sound from inside the main halls of the lair. A sound that would haunt him to the end of his days.

Agonizing and inhuman screams could be heard along with the swishes of blades.

Bebop gulped and his heart pounded with fear. There was no doubt that his boss was now a dead man.

 **Holy crap…0.0 Intense, huh? The next few chapters will be focused on each character and how they live their lives 30 years later.**

 **I wrote this chapter after I said goodbye to my 13 year old dog, Nala. I was with her as they put her to sleep. I'm greatly saddened that she had to go, but at the same time I'm relieved that she won't suffer anymore. She's finally at peace. :')**


	2. The Serpent

_**Thirty years later…**_

"And then he said, 'At least _mine's_ the real deal!'"

The obese but rich Bebop laughed along with his four crime lord friends in the backseat of his limousine. Instead of his usual tight high-tech pants and vest, he now wore an expensive purple suit with a gold tie and had a 14k white gold ring on each finger.

It had been 30 years since the ninja Turtle known as Leonardo had butchered Bebop's old boss, the Shredder, as well as the rest of his henchmen. The only survivor of the onslaught, Bebop started an illegal business of his own, smuggling and selling drugs, and at some point, he even took part in human trafficking.

By now Bebop had become one of the most respected and feared crime lords in all of New York, with Don Vizioso being his only rival.

And Vizioso, of course, would not tolerate any challenge to his rule.

A lanky man in a grey suit took a sip of his cocktail before slurring, "You-you know, there's a rumor that…that Don Vizioso has hired a hitman to ice you, Bebop."

The mutant pig merely pulled his head back and laughed haughtily. "That big donut hole? Hiring a hitman to ice _me_? Ha! That's a good one!" He leaned back into his calfskin seat and drank champagne out of a bottle. "No one's dumb enough to put a hit on the great Bebop," he snorted as he licked his lips.

Suddenly out of nowhere, a shuriken sliced through the front window and embedded itself deep in the driver's neck, causing him to let go of the wheel. The limo spun out of control and crashed into a light pole. The bodyguards that were driving in separate smaller cars hit the brakes and hopped out with AK-47s in their hands.

They cautiously surrounded the crashed vehicle and looked around for any suspects. A dark figure stood on a rooftop and observed them. Grinning devilishly, he pulled out twin katanas from behind his hump and leapt at the unsuspecting men below.

Meanwhile, inside the limo, Bebop tried to wipe off the champagne that had been spilt all over his 15 grand suit. "Remind me to fire that stupid driver afterwards," he growled to the other crime lords, who remained in their seats. "And to bust a cap in his big butt."

He slammed the door open, intending to give the driver a piece of his mind, when he saw the bodies of his bodyguards spread out across the street in front of him. Some of them had even been decapitated. His heart pounded so hard as fear and dread took over. He pulled a gun from underneath his suit and pointed it shakily. He frantically looked around him, but he couldn't see anything in the dark. Every sound he heard made him jump 10 feet off the ground and he would fire a bullet in the direction of the noise.

Then the limousine behind him suddenly exploded.

And Bebop wasn't sure if the other crime lords got out in time. Not that he cared.

A shadowy figure landed on top of the burning vehicle, the bright orange color of the flames reflecting off his swords. And even in the dark, Bebop could see that the stranger was smiling at him in a chilling way.

He wasted no time in shooting at the mysterious man, who sprinted away from the bullets with a speed comparable to that of a hummingbird's wings. And before he knew it, the gun was sliced in half, and his hand had been cut in the process. Bebop screamed in pain and gripped his wrist as blood dripped from his hand. He looked up to see the face of the man who dared to hurt him.

The mutant pig remained frozen as he looked into the familiar deep blue eyes that instantly sent shivers down his spine.

"Hello, Bebop. Did you miss me?"

Leonardo was now bigger and older, but instead of a blue mask, he wore black. Black sleeves covered his arms and black tape was wrapped around his legs. And on his plastron was a tattoo of a black serpent. His blades were dripping with blood that no doubt belonged to Bebop's bodyguards.

"You?" Bebop whispered. "Wha…what do you want with me?"

Leo smirked and pointed the tip of his katana at Bebop's chest. "Vizioso wants you dead, piggy. Said you're getting in the way of his business. So he hired me to cut your heart out."

"Wait a minute," Bebop gulped, " _you're_ the hitman? But-but aren't you supposed to be, you know…a good guy?"

Leo's smirk quickly turned into a scowl. "Not anymore," he growled. "Now let's get this over with and get on your knees."

Bebop started to cry. "W-w-wait! I-I-I can pay you triple what-what Vizioso is paying! I swear it! Or-or if it's not money you want, I-I know plenty of girls who can…!"

Leo hit Bebop in the face with the blunt end of a sword, causing him to spit out blood. "I won't say it again," he sneered. "On…your…knees."

Bebop continued to weep but obeyed nevertheless. Once he knelt on the ground, the Turtle walked behind him and sheathed one of his katanas.

Bebop knew what Leo was doing. He was getting ready to execute him by beheading.

"P-p-please, man!" the pig whimpered. "I know what this is really about. This-this is about your brother, right? Shredder was the one who tore him up, not me! I-I didn't even touch him!"

"That may be true," he heard Leo say, "but you're still just as guilty as he was. Not only did you watch…"

He felt the Turtle lean in close to his face and whisper in his ear.

"…but you also _laughed_."

Leo's hand appeared in front of him and was holding a photograph. "Hold this out in front of you and look at it."

Bebop couldn't even move and was shaking tremendously. This aggravated Leo even more and he screamed in his ear, " **HOLD IT!** "

Bebop yelped and snatched the photo out of Leo's hand. He held it out and realized that it was a picture of the Turtle's late brother, Michelangelo. He was smiling and waving, and in his arms was some kind of ice cream-cat mutant.

"Take a good look at his face, Bebop, because it will be the last thing you ever see."

 _SWISH!_

* * *

"It's done."

Leo held up Bebop's bloodied suit for Don Vizioso to see. The Italian mobster, now in his eighties, smiled and clapped his hands, applauding the Turtle. He slowly got out of his tiny chair, which surprisingly hadn't yet been crushed by his weight.

"Well done!" he exclaimed. "You truly are the best contract killer in New York."

"What can I say?" Leo shrugged and threw the suit aside. "I was trained by the best."

Vizioso handed him a large black suitcase. "Your payment, 100 grand, as promised. But before you go, care to join me for dinner?"

Leo nodded. "Sure. Why not?"

* * *

The Turtle and the mobster sat across from each other at the table, enjoying spaghetti and red wine. Vizioso wiped his mouth with napkin before looking up to speak with Leo. "So I hope you don't mind me asking, but why did you give up being the hero? You were once the leader of the ninja Turtles, were you not?"

Leo stared at his reflection in the glass. "It all started after the Shredder killed Mikey right in front of me. I became so determined to avenge my brother's death that I put aside all my morals and disregarded everything Sensei taught us about 'mercy' and 'honor'. I gave that monster the slow, agonizing death that he deserved. And let me tell you something: it felt _great_."

He took a sip of his wine and smiled bitterly. "I then realized that heroes never get the job done, because they let things such as ethical principles and codes get in the way. The Shredder kept tormenting us because we hesitated and let him live. If we had done things the right way, Mikey would still be alive." He frowned and took out his photo of Mikey, looking at it with sad eyes. "But he isn't."

"Well," Vizioso plopped a grape into his mouth, "I give you my deepest condolences. But you're right: heroes are too weak. It takes strong and powerful men like us to rule this city. In fact, why don't you join us? We'll be, like, you know, your new family."

Leo looked up and shook his head. "Thank you, but…I'd rather work alone than become part of another family. I'm kind of like a solitary predator: I live and hunt on my own."

"I understand," Vizioso nodded slowly. "And I respect your decision. Ah, here comes the main course."

The cook walked in with a large platter and set it on the table. Vizioso licked his lips and removed the lid, revealing a pig's head.

Vizioso looked surprised. "Huh, that's funny. I thought we were having roasted duck tonight, not roasted pig's head."

"Oh, well," Leo cut a piece with a knife and put it on his plate. "Looks delicious anyway. Besides, it fits the occasion, don't you agree?" He put a piece in his mouth and chewed it slowly, and he closed his eyes as he savored its taste. "So good."

Vizioso shrugged and took a bite himself. It really _was_ good. But as he continued to chew, he suddenly felt something stringy on his tongue, like a hair. He reached for it with his fingers and pulled it out of his mouth. It was indeed a hair, but it wasn't black, white, brown, or blonde.

It was purple.

Vizioso grew nervous and glanced up at Leo, who only stared at him as he continued to eat.

"What's wrong?" Leo smirked and drank his wine. "Found a hair in your food?"

The old man tried to hide his fear with a smile and a chuckle. "Yeah, I outta fire that cook. He needs to wear a hairnet or something." He then noticed something slowly crawl out of the pig's mouth.

To his horror, it was a black mamba.

Just as Vizioso was about to flee from the table, the snake lunged at him and bit his hand. He screamed in pain and fell backwards in his chair. Leo merely wiped his mouth with a napkin and walked over to the hyperventilating man.

"Vizioso," he said, "I'd like you to meet my pet snake, Precious. You'll have to forgive her; she has a tendency to bite people."

"W-w-w-w-why?" Vizioso stammered as he began to sweat. "I-I-I paid ya, did-didn't I?"

"You did," Leo knelt down over him and used his napkin to wipe away the sweat from the old man's face. "And I thank you for your business. But you have to understand, you're scum. And like all scum, you need to be erased from the earth."

He leaned in close to Vizioso's face. "And I won't stop until this city has been cleansed of all scum…including myself."

Leo got up and lured Precious into a box, then took the suitcase full of money. "Oh, and I wouldn't count on any of your guards to come save you," he looked over his shoulder at Vizioso and smiled devilishly. "I made sure of that before I came here. And I paid that cook to help set the trap, so he won't save you, either. It's amazing what money can buy, huh?"

As he went to the door, he told the dying man, "I'd say you have about 30 minutes to live."

* * *

He stared up at the ceiling. The morning light from the window lit up the dark bedroom in his apartment. A human hand reached up and caressed his face. He looked over at the woman lying next to him. She gave him a sweet smile and kissed his beak.

"Did you sleep well, hon?" she softly asked him as she laid her head on his plastron.

He stroked her long black hair with his fingers. "I slept fine, Raven." He looked back up at the ceiling.

Raven Shadowheart looked up at her boyfriend with concern. "Is something wrong?" When he didn't answer, she leaned in closer to his face. "Leo, tell me what's the matter."

He closed his eyes and sighed deeply. She really believed that he was a nocturnal vigilante who rescued the weak and helpless from bad guys, like Batman. He never told her that he was also a hired assassin, and for five years now he had lived a double life and lied to her.

It was time to stop lying and let her go.

"Raven," he turned to look directly into her brown eyes and gently touched her cheek, "you're my soulmate, and I'll always love you."

Raven didn't like where this was going. "But…?" she whispered.

His gaze didn't leave hers. "But I don't deserve you. I haven't been completely honest to you the last five years."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm not who you think I am. I'm no hero."

He closed his eyes and removed his hand from her cheek.

"I'm really a scumbag who kills for money. That's how I've been earning my living for the last thirty years."

Raven's face became pale. "What?" she said quietly and full of fear.

"You're afraid of me now, aren't you?" he asked with a sad smile. "Good. You shouldn't be hanging around someone who's as dangerous as me. You deserve much better."

"Leo, I…I don't understand," she sat up and reached a hand to his shoulder. "Why are you…?"

"Please go." He turned his shell to her and faced the wall.

It was silent for a moment before Raven spoke. "Leo, please. Let's talk about this. Honey, I love you more than life it…"

" _ **GO!**_ "

The tip of his blade pointed at her throat. She screamed and fell out of the bed. Not even taking the time to change out of her nightgown, she grabbed her coat and ran out of the apartment.

Leo was left all alone in the bed, looking down at the katana in his hands.

It needed to be done. Despite how painful it felt to let her go, it needed to be done.

He got out of his bed and walked to the window, staring at the sun that peeked over the skyscrapers. He leaned his forehead onto the glass and closed his eyes.

One of these days, he will have to end his own life in order to protect this city. And he couldn't afford to be emotionally attached to anyone, because then it'd be harder for him to go through with it.

 _Someday, Mikey…we'll see each other again._

 **Happy Thanksgiving, y'all!**


	3. The Reporter

_Six of New York's most infamous crime lords were murdered last night by an unknown assailant. Locals claim that it was the work of the nocturnal vigilante known as the "Serpent"._

 _While investigating the murder of Don Vizioso, police found a bite mark on his right hand. An autopsy revealed that it was the venom of a snake that killed the mobster. Over the last five years, more than two hundred criminals were found with the same bite marks and were injected with the same snake venom._

 _One of the murdered crime lords, Bebop, formerly known as Anton Zeck before he mutated, was decapitated and his head was found on a platter in Vizioso's dining room. It is unknown if Vizioso was the one who murdered Bebop or if it was the Serpent. Either way, it is a very disturbing image._

 _The other four crime lords, Bartholomew "Bart" Zandall, Eric T. Raceman, Abraham O'Rein, and Alfred Bloodworth were all killed when their limousine exploded._

 _And seven other unidentified men were found on the street near the burnt vehicle. Four of them had been decapitated. Now that's what I call a massacre, folks._

 _April Jones is now at the sight of the explosion, interviewing with the police and locals about the incident last night. April?_

Forty-six year old April Jones, now with short red hair and wearing a yellow dress, stood in front of the camera with a Channel 6 microphone in her hand.

"Hi, Derek. I've been asking the residents of the apartments what they knew about last night's massacre. Most of them weren't even home at the time, but those who were in their bedrooms woke up at the sound of the explosion and looked out their windows. Anna Cloverfield here actually witnessed the murder of the crime lord Bebop. Anna, could share with us what you saw last night?"

She held out the mic to an older woman wearing a blue robe and curls in her hair. "I'll tell you something, April, it was a _horrible_ ," she shuddered. "The pig guy was forced on his knees and then the Serpent cut his head off with a sword! I saw it with my own eyes!"

"So you're thinking that the killer was the Serpent vigilante?" April asked her with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, he fitted the description of the Serpent: he had a large hump on his back and two samurai swords in his hands. That was really all I could make out, 'cause it was really dark out. "

"I'm curious, Anna, what do you think of the Serpent? Do you think that he's a hero? I mean, I'll admit that his tactics are a bit extreme, but crime in New York _has_ gone down tremendously over the last thirty years because of him."

"Hero? The guy's a psychopath! I mean, he _cuts_ people's heads off! You know who else cuts people's heads off? Terrorists! Yeah, that's right! The guy's probably a terrorist who targets criminals! He thinks he gets to be Judge, Jury and Executioner! I got a message for the Serpent: leave the crime fighting to the police and get out of this city!" She tried to grab the mic out of April's hand and screamed into it. "I hope that the police find you, lock you up, and throw away the key, murderer!"

April pulled the mic away from Anna with a frown. "Um, thank you, Anna. Well, there you have it, Derek. According to our witnesses, this could indeed be the work of the Serpent. Police are also saying that the evidence points to him, and they, too, are eager to capture him and put him behind bars."

 _Thank you, April. Coming up next, the Green Man spotted once again in the woods of Northampton. Is he even a man? Or is he a mutant?_

April sighed and headed to the station van. The cameraman followed her and put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, April," he said softly. "You okay? You seemed stressed."

She turned and gave him a small smile. "I'm okay, Vernon. It's just been a long week."

"I hear ya," Vernon put away his camera and stretched himself. "My landlord's like a vampire but even worse: instead of blood he's sucking me dry of money."

April giggled at the younger man's joke, then she heard her phone ring in her pocket. She took it out and answered it. "Hello? Yes, this is she. Oh, Principal Hoffman! How are you?" As she listened, her smile slowly turned into a frown. "I'm…I'm sorry, she did _what_? I see. All right, I'll head over there right now. No, no, it's fine. I'm done for the day, anyway. Yes, and I'm so sorry about this, sir." She hung up and rubbed her temples.

"Uh-oh," Vernon mumbled. "What did Shadow do this time?"

"You don't want to know," she climbed into the passenger seat of the van and slammed her door shut.

* * *

"And after she kicked him in the groin, she actually _spat_ in his face," Hoffman sat at his desk and pointed at the sulking fifteen year old girl who sat next to April. Her long blonde hair hid her face from her mother, who glanced at her disapprovingly. "Mrs. Jones, this is the fourth time this year that Shadow has picked a fight with a fellow student. Surely you agree that this can't go on?"

April looked back at the principal and nodded. "I do agree with you, Mr. Hoffman. And I can assure you that it won't happen again."

"Yes, well, that's what you said the last three times you've visited my office," Hoffman murmured as he looked down at the folder full of Shadow's files. He held it out for April to see. "And I have yet to see progress. If I were you, I'd have her participate in the Scared Straight program before she grows up to be an unruly and dangerous criminal."

"This is stupid," Shadow mumbled. April elbowed her daughter and shook her head.

"I'll discuss this matter with her father," April told the principal as she got out of her chair and shook his hand. "Again, I'm so sorry about this, sir. Come on, Shadow." Her daughter grabbed her backpack and followed her to the door.

* * *

As they drove away from the school, April scolded Shadow for her misbehavior. "Shadow, you can't keep beating up kids at school. I understand that you have anger management issues, but that doesn't mean…"

"You don't understand how I feel," Shadow grumbled as she crossed her arms and put her feet on the dashboard. "You never did."

"Well, maybe if you'd give me the chance, I could understand," April retorted. "See, this is why we need more family discussions. Your father and I want to help you before you do grow up to be a hoodlum, honey."

"Oh, thanks for having so much faith in me, Mom," Shadow sassed her mother. "I guess I really am destined to become a criminal like Principal Hoffman said."

"I don't appreciate the sassiness," April narrowed her eyes at her. "And get your feet off the dashboard _now_."

Shadow huffed and obeyed her mother. "And just so you know, the Scared Straight program has been proven to be ineffective and actually does more harm than good for kids like me."

"Shadow, I am not putting you in that program," April said as she came to a stoplight. "But your father and I are going to talk about how we're going to deal with this problem of yours." She looked at her daughter sympathetically and put a hand on her shoulder. "Honey, we really do want to help you and understand what you're going through. And we will, but you need to _let_ us, first of all. Will you give us that chance?"

Shadow stared at her mother for a moment before clearing her throat and gesturing to the traffic light. "Um, Mom, it's green."

"Huh? OH!" April put her foot on the pedal and continued driving. For a few minutes, there was an awkward silence before Shadow spoke in a soft voice.

"He called me a 'b**ch'."

April looked at her daughter in shock. "Who? Principal Hoffman?"

"No, the kid I beat up," Shadow looked out her window and pulled her knees closer to her chest. "But that was nowhere as bad as what the last kid called me."

"What did _that_ kid call you?"

Shadow buried her head in her knees. "I'd rather not repeat it."

* * *

"Hey, I'm home!"

Casey walked into the kitchen wearing his hockey jacket, the name "Coach Jones" labeled on the right side of his chest. He found April sitting at the table, holding a cup of coffee and staring at the T.V. in the living room. Her face looked grim and her eyes appeared to glimmer with tears.

"Honey?" he walked to the table and knelt down at her level. "What's wrong?" He followed her gaze to the screen of the T.V. The footage of the crime scene was being shown again on Channel 6. The news ticker at the bottom read, "THE SERPENT STRIKES AGAIN? 13 MURDERED."

Casey immediately understood and wrapped his arms around his wife. "Red," he whispered gently to her, "it might not even be him. I mean, he wouldn't do something this awful. Right?"

April hugged the warm arms that surrounded her and sighed deeply. "I want to believe that it's someone else. But, really, Casey, who else in this town has twin samurai swords and a large hump on his back? Besides, on the night Mikey…" She shut her eyes and bit her lower lip. "Leo wasn't himself after that. You saw it, too, Casey. How cold and…I don't know…lost he had become."

"Yeah, but I doubt that someone like Leo would stoop that low," he said. "After all, that's not what Mikey would've wanted."

"Mikey also wanted the family to stay together no matter what," April looked directly into his brown eyes. "And yet they all went their separate ways after the funeral. We haven't heard from any of them in thirty years. So we can't rule out the possibility that the Serpent is, in fact, Leo."

Casey stared into her sad blue eyes before caressing her cheek. "That's not the only thing that's bothering you, is it?"

April looked down at the table. "Shadow got sent to the principal's office today. She got into another fight."

Casey stood back up and rubbed his face. "Oh, god," he mumbled. "Another fight?"

"She said the kid called her a 'b**ch."

Casey's eyes widened and a scowl appeared on his face. "Oh, really?" he growled. "Well, that punk got what he deserved. In fact, if Shadow hadn't beaten him up first, I would've given him…"

"Casey," April scolded her husband. "We need to focus on Shadow's anger problems."

"Oh, right. Well…what about that Scared Straight program?"

April rolled her eyes at this. "No, honey. We are not resorting to _that_."

"All right, all right, it was just a suggestion. Let's see…we could sign her up for a teenage anger management class."

"I never had much faith in those kinds of classes."

"Well, what else do you suggest? Take her to a shrink and have her pour out her soul on the couch?"

April rested her cheek on her hand and sighed. What other options _were_ there?

* * *

The phone in their bedroom rang as April was drying her hair. Casey was downstairs watching a hockey game while Shadow was in her room doing her homework. She turned off the blow dryer and picked up the phone. "Hello?"

 _Hello. Is this April O'Neil?_

"Well, actually, it's April Jones now. Who is this?"

 _April, it's me, Karai._

She almost dropped the phone in shock.

"Karai…? Oh, my gosh. I…I can't believe it's you…!"

 _I know it's been a while. Thirty years to be exact._

"How have you been? How's Master Splinter?"

She heard Karai sigh on the other line.

 _I'm doing well, but Father isn't._

April felt her heart drop at those words.

"What…what do you mean by that?"

 _He's getting worse every day. His health is failing him and I'm not sure how long he is going to last. One of these days he'll go to sleep and…and never wake up again._

She put a mouth to her hand and sat down at the bed, her hand gripping the phone even tighter.

"So you…want us to come see him before he…?"

 _Yeah. But listen, April, it can't be just you and Casey. The whole family has to be here. Or what's left of it anyway. We need to find the other Turtles and have them come see Father one last time._

"But, Karai, I-I have no idea where Leo, Raph, or Donnie are. I've lost touch with them since Mikey's funeral."

 _We have to try anyway. For Father's sake. Please, April. I can't do this without you._

April glanced at the picture sitting on the drawer next to the bed. It was a photo of her and the rest of the gang. Donnie was smiling and still full of life, before he became like an emotionless and cold machine. April winked at the camera while Casey did the bunny ears behind Leo's head. Raph wore his trademark scowl and had his arms crossed. Leo was the one holding the camera, but he was glancing down at Mikey with an annoyed expression on his face. The youngest Turtle wore a silly grin and his tongue was sticking out.

She knew that things would never be the same without Mikey, but just as she had pointed out to Casey earlier, he would've wanted his family to stay together. That was what he died for, after all.

And the least she could do for her old Sensei was to let him see his sons once more before passing into the next life. She couldn't imagine the guilt and loneliness that he had been feeling for the last thirty years. She was actually surprised that he lasted this long.

"Okay, Karai, I'll help you find the others."

 **As you can see, I am using characters from the Mirage comics, the Image comics, and even the 1987 cartoon. Though Vernon in this story is actually a nice and well-mannered young man in his late twenties.**


	4. The Search Begins

**For those of you who are following "Story for Chloe", I promise that I will get back to it eventually, but right now I am obsessed with "Mourning". I am on a roll here, XD LOL!**

 **And I am greatly saddened to find out that Season 5 will be the last season for TMNT :'(**

She stepped into the lair for the first time in thirty years. Not much has changed. In fact, _nothing_ has changed since she was last here. Everything, including the pinball machine and punching dummy, was still in place. She wondered…

April walked into the kitchen and opened the freezer. Sadly, there was no Ice Cream Kitty to greet her, only ice cream and other frozen products.

She suddenly felt someone breathing on her neck and slowly turned her head. Two very large purple eyes were staring into her blue ones. Before she could run, the mysterious figure pounced on her, pinning her to the floor. She was about to scream when she realized who her "attacker" really was.

"Chompy?"

Chompy, Raph's pet space turtle, had certainly grown a lot bigger over the years. He was about the size of a hippopotamus, his spikes were now larger and more jagged, and had very sharp, pointy teeth.

And he was licking April's face like crazy.

"Uck!" April spat as slobber got into her mouth. "Chom…Chompy! Quit it! I'm happy to see you, too, but please get off!"

She heard someone whistle and the giant turtle immediately got off of her. A woman wearing a black leather dress and a Japanese hair bun stood over her. She wore blue eyeliner and deep rosy red lipstick.

She offered her hand to April and smiled down at her. "Good to see you again, April."

April smiled as she took the woman's hand and got back on her feet. "It's good to see you, too, Karai. Uh, I mean, Miwa?"

"It's okay," Karai chuckled. "I don't mind being called 'Karai'."

"So…where is he?"

"In the dojo. Come on."

* * *

The elderly rat sat in front of the tree, his back facing April as she quietly walked into her old training room. He didn't even seem to notice her presence, so she whispered, "Master Splinter?"

An ear twitched and he quickly turned his head. The dark brown fur that once covered his face had become grey with age and there were bags under his eyes. His cheeks had lost their fat and sunken in. He looked so frail and worn that it broke April's heart, and she immediately wrapped her old Sensei in a warm hug.

"April?" the rat's voice sounded raspy and his shaking hands reached up to touch her back.

The former student looked behind Splinter and saw a photo of Mikey standing in between two lit candles on the floor. The shredded remains of his orange mask lay at the bottom of a porcelain bowl. Her eyes brimmed with tears as she realized that he was mediating in front of an altar dedicated to his lost son.

She buried her face in his shoulder and soothingly rubbed his back.

* * *

"He's always in front of that altar," Karai sighed as she poured April some tea. "Every day, from dawn to dusk. He hardly eats and he cries in his sleep every night. He's slowly killing himself with guilt and regret, and he doesn't have much time left."

"And you want to bring the Turtles back to the lair before it's too late," April finished for her. "I understand. But, listen, Karai, I'm not sure if it's a good idea to get Leo involved."

"Why not?"

"Well, he took Splinter's decision the hardest, and I have a suspicion that he's been committing…terrible acts lately. Particularly, and this isn't easy for me to say…murder."

Karai stared at April for a moment before looking down at her cup with a somber expression. "Yeah, I've been suspecting that, too."

April's eyes widened in shock. "Really?"

Karai nodded and took a sip of her tea. "They keep talking about this 'Serpent' vigilante on the news, and their description of him…it breaks my heart to think that Leo would do such horrible things, but at the same time it doesn't surprise me." She looked up at April with her sad brown eyes. "He had always looked up to Splinter as a role model, but after watching Mikey die, his whole world completely shattered, as did his faith in his father. But despite everything that had happened, he won't harm Splinter."

"How can you be so sure of that?" April asked nervously.

"Because when Father offered him the chance to kill him, he didn't take it," Karai said softly.

For a moment April forgot how to breathe. Splinter was willing to let Leo _kill_ him? "Did," she swallowed a lump in her throat before continuing, "did he ever try to hurt himself afterwards?"

"Twice," Karai said. "The first time he tried to commit seppuku in the dojo, only two days after that fateful night. Five years later, he went to the surface and attempted to jump off the Brooklyn Bridge." She stopped for a moment and buried her head in her hands. "April, I was afraid to leave the lair for twenty years because of his suicidal thoughts. I didn't want to lose the only family I had left." She then proceeded to cry in front of April, who put a hand on her shoulder in comfort.

"I'm so sorry, Karai," April whispered to her.

Karai eventually calmed down and wiped her tears away. "Anyway," she sniffled, "Even though his sons might still hate him, just seeing them again would be enough and he'll finally be at peace with himself."

"Well, I've been doing some research," April pulled a laptop from out of her bag, "and I think I know where to find Donnie and Raph." She continued to speak as she typed on the keyboard. "You know those new MetalCops that Morph Enterprises produced a few months ago? Well, I've noticed how similar they are to Metalhead, one of Donnie's past inventions. Look at the comparison."

April turned the laptop, revealing the picture of a MetalCop on the screen. She then held up an old photo of Metalhead and showed it to Karai.

"I'm pretty sure that he invented those robots, himself, and if my theory is correct, then we should find him at Morph Enterprises. As for Raph, after Mikey's funeral, he ran off into the woods of North Hampton and we haven't seen or heard from him since. But you know the "Green Man" from the news? The mysterious green creature that's just as famous as Bigfoot? I think he and Raph are in, fact, the same person."

"What about Leo?" Karai asked quietly.

"If anyone can find him," April smirked at her, "it's _you_ , Karai. Casey will go look for Raph in North Hampton, while I go see Donnie at Morph Enterprises."

"And if they all say 'no'?"

April sighed. "Then at least we will have tried."

"Right," Karai nodded and sighed as well, rubbing her temples. Chompy, sensing her master's distress, stomped into the kitchen and nuzzled her comfortingly. Karai responded by wrapping her arms around his large neck.

The reporter smiled, moved by this touching moment. She then looked at the refrigerator, reminded once again of Mikey's beloved pet cat. "Karai, what happened to Ice Cream Kitty? Did she melt?"

"I'm afraid she did," Karai patted Chompy on the head with a somber expression. "Three days after Mikey died, she crawled out of the freezer and searched for him throughout the lair. By the time I found her, she had already melted into a puddle. She died looking for her master."

April took in a shaky breath and willed herself not to cry.

"Hey, Karai, is…is it okay if I go into Mikey's old bedroom?"

* * *

"Are you sure you want to do this, Red?"

Casey and April stood in front of their van the next morning, the former getting ready to drive down to North Hampton to look for Raph.

"I mean," Casey gently put his hands on April's shoulders, "They might not even agree to this. And from what I heard, the security at Morph Enterprises is pretty tight."

"Casey," April winked at her husband, "you're forgetting that I have psychic powers."

"Oh, right," Casey smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck. "And if Donnie says no, you can just hypnotize him into coming with you, right?"

"That's not how it works, Casey," she rolled her eyes at him.

"I know, honey," Casey chuckled. "I was just kidding. But seriously, what if he refuses?"

"I can't force him to go," April said somberly. "And if he does refuse, then we'll have to do this, with or without him."

"Well, I'll try to find Raph and talk to him," Casey said. "But I'm not making any promises."

"Just do your best, honey," April said as she caressed his cheek. "And by the way, be sure to give this to Raph when you do find him." She handed him a package wrapped in brown paper.

"What is it?" Casey asked as he observed the object in his hands.

"Don't ask questions," April replied. "Just make sure that he gets it."

Casey raised an eyebrow at his wife but shrugged and put the mysterious package in the passenger seat.

"Casey?"

Her husband turned to look at her. She took his hand and rubbed it with her thumb.

"Please be careful."

Casey nodded and pulled her into a hug. After they embraced, they kissed passionately before the hockey coach got into his van and backed out of the driveway.

April watched him drive away before hopping into her own car. She turned the ignition key and started the engine. She took a moment to look at her reflection in the review mirror.

She was really doing this. After thirty long years, she was going to reunite with the Turtles.

 _Please, God…please let this work._

She took a deep breath and put the car in reverse.

 **Will the plan work? Will Leo, Raph, and Donnie agree to come back? To be continued...0^0**


	5. The Machine

**You all might get angry as you're reading this fanfiction. Just a warning…:(**

 **Also, I'm not good at describing scientific stuff, so I'm a bit rusty…sorry. :)'**

 _Hi, everyone. Glenn Keaton. Welcome to the Keaton Hour, and joining us today is Malcolm Sefton, the founder of Morph Enterprises. Welcome, Mr. Sefton._

 _Thank you for having me, Keaton._

 _So, Mr. Sefton, your latest contribution to the police force, the MetalCops, have been praised for saving thousands of lives during the last three months since they have been introduced. Now I understand that the reason you put so much effort into this was because you were tired of all the deaths of cops and deaths_ by _cops?_

 _Yes, that's right, Keaton. There are too many casualties on both sides. Families are losing fathers, mothers, sons, daughters. All of America is sick of it, and that's why I hired some of the most brilliant minds in our country to invent a robot that would be able to take down criminals and offenders without causing fatal injuries. The ballistic steel armor covering its body protects it from damages caused by bullets. And it does not fire bullets, itself. It instead stuns the perpetrator with a wrist-mounted Taser._

 _And for when they are high-speed chases, it can actually transform itself into a vehicle?_

 _Yes, that's correct._

 _And how fast can these things go?_

 _The maximum speed is 315 mph._

 _Oh, my goodness. So, every police cruiser is required to have one MetalCop, correct? So whenever a cop pulls someone over, it's the MetalCop that actually inspects the driver first?_

 _Well, Keaton, every MetalCop has a camera, through which the officer can see whether or not the driver is armed and dangerous. The MetalCop asks the driver to show his/her license and registration, and once it receives the documents, it gives them to the patrol officer. If the driver is suspected of being drunk or hiding any drugs, the officer will instruct the MetalCop to keep an eye on the driver while he inspects the vehicle or does a sobriety test. If the MetalCop detects any kind of threat from the driver, it will immediately take action and pin him/her to the ground._

 _So the robot actually makes decisions? It thinks for itself?_

 _It does what it is programmed to do. It still takes orders from police officers, but if it detects danger, it will do whatever it takes to protect the officer and the citizens._

 _And what if the police officer is the threat, himself?_

 _Well, like I said, the MetalCop has a camera and monitors everything, and so if the officer does abuse his power, then the people down at the station who are watching can determine what to do at that point._

 _Astounding. Well, Mr. Sefton, all of America thanks you for your MetalCops. Except maybe the criminals._

 _Ha ha ha, I'm sure. But the real credit goes to the scientists of Morph Enterprises. Without them, none of this would have been possible._

* * *

April walked through the big glass doors and to the front desk. A blonde woman filing her fingernails didn't look up at her as she entered. "Can I help you?" she asked rather unenthusiastically.

"Um, yes, I think someone I know works here," April said. "A…mutant turtle, perhaps?"

The clerk looked up from her nails and raised an eyebrow at her. "Turtle?" she scoffed. "Ma'am, if a 'turtle' was working here, I'd know about it."

"Okay, well, what about 'Donatello?' April suggested. "Does that name ring a bell?"

The woman sighed exasperatedly and picked up the phone. "Hold on, I'll check," she mumbled. She tapped her fingers on the desk waiting for someone to answer. "Nate? Yeah, it's Katie. You know anybody named 'Donatello' who works here? Okay, thanks." She hung up and looked back at April with a shrug. "Sorry, ma'am. No Donatello works here."

April felt her heart sank. "Are you absolutely sure? Because it's really important that I meet…"

"Look, ma'am, we're really busy here," Katie went back to filing her nails. "If you really want to find this guy, go to an archivist or something."

April nearly gave up and was about to leave, when she noticed that Katie was too preoccupied with her nails to be aware of her surroundings. She didn't even notice an employee who carrying a large pile of papers and a cup of coffee trip and fall flat on his face.

She casually and quietly walked around the desk, keeping an eye on Katie as she passed by. Thankfully, she was able to sneak past the not-so reliable clerk.

* * *

She eventually found the security control room, where a tubby officer was busy texting. "Excuse me, sir, I need to find someone, an old friend of mine. I think he works here."

The officer didn't look up from his phone. "If you need help, go to the clerk," he merely said.

April rolled her eyes. Where did Casey hear that security here was tight? Using her mind, she lifted the chair off the ground and slammed the officer headfirst into the ceiling. When she put the chair back down, the man was unconscious and had a large bump on his head. "Sorry," she whispered.

She then walked to the video wall and searched for any sign of her Turtle friend. There were several laboratories but only one of them had an employee at work. His back was to the camera, and she couldn't see his face. But as she leaned in closer, she noticed that his back looked more like a…

"Donnie…!"

* * *

She was now facing the door to the lab, and slowly, she reached for the doorknob with a shaky hand. She turned it and opened the door, the cool air rushing out and the sound of typing could be heard.

She walked into the white clean room. Several deactivated MetalCops, two of them with limbs missing, were sitting in a corner. About twenty empty coffee cups were on a metal table in the middle of the room. And sitting at a desk in front of a computer was the employee she had been searching for.

There was no doubt about it. It was Donatello. She'd recognize that shell and grey green skin anywhere. She noticed that he wasn't wearing his old purple mask, though.

She opened her mouth, but the words were stuck in her throat. What _could_ she say? She felt like it had been an eternity since she last saw him and his brothers. Her heart was now pounding harder than ever and her legs were shaking.

 _Get a hold of yourself, April. Remember Master Splinter._

"Donnie?" she said barely below a whisper.

At the sound of her voice, the Turtle turned his head and she nearly jumped back when she saw a robotic red eye glancing back at her.

Donnie turned around in his office chair and revealed his shocking new appearance to her. His right arm and both of his legs had been replaced with robotic limbs. Both of his once auburn eyes had cyborg implants. The way they coldly bore into her own eyes sent shivers down her spine.

Was it just his body that had changed? Was the old Donnie even in there? There was only one way to find out.

"Donnie," she said softly, "It's…it's great to see you again."

The cyborg Turtle simply stared at her, folding his hands in his lap. Why wasn't he saying anything?

April swallowed and forced herself to speak. "Something's different about you, Donnie. Did you get a…a haircut?" She chuckled weakly and wringed her hands. "Bad joke, I know. You guys never had hair, anyway."

Donnie didn't even crack a smile. He continued to look at her impassively.

There was awkward silence in the room for a moment.

"So, um…?" April nervously started to say, before she was interrupted by Donnie.

"This is a restricted area."

"…what?"

"You shouldn't be in here," he continued to speak in a monotone voice. "I'm on the clock, and you're just wasting my time." He turned back around and started typing again. "So I suggest you leave before I call security."

April stared at him in disbelief as he continued to type. How could he say that to one of his best friends? Did he even think of her as a friend anymore?

"Security?" she spat. "You mean that fat oaf who's too busy texting and stuffing his face with donuts? Yeah, I wouldn't count on him coming to get me. Besides, have you completely forgotten who you're talking to? Former kunoichi with telekinetic powers?"

"What do you want, April?" Donnie sighed without turning away from the computer.

"Is that all you have to say to me?" April asked incredulously. "After all these years? Do you have any idea how many nights I've stayed awake thinking about you and the others? Wondering if you were even still _alive_? Do you even _care_ that one of your best friends went through all this trouble just to see you again? I'm jeopardizing my own career here! I'm risking everything for _you_ , Donnie!"

He only continued typing.

April felt angry tears building up in her eyes. She took a deep breath and tried to keep herself together. "Anyway," she said shakily, "I'm here because Master Splinter's dying."

"And?" he asked impassively.

" _And_ ," she snapped, "we need to get the family back together again before it's too late."

"Well, good luck with that," he mumbled.

"Aren't you going to come? Aren't you even concerned that your father is dying?"

"Everybody dies. Nobody lives forever. You of all people should know that, April."

"But…but, Donnie…he's still your _father_ …! He raised you since you were a baby. He _loved_ you like a son."

"The 'love' he had for me or any of his sons was merely a result of the hormone Oxytocin. It's just a chemical reaction."

 _Okay, April, take a deep breath. Give him one last chance._

"You know, Mikey would've wanted you to come."

"Mikey's dead. What does it matter?"

"Donnie…please…"

He suddenly turned to look at her. "I'll tell you what _does_ matter, though. What matters is that my bosses are depending on me to produce _twelve thousand_ MetalCops by the end of the week, and if I want to keep my job, then I have to meet the deadline. And the more time you spend talking to me, the more money you're costing me. So if you don't mind, _please_ leave and let finish my work." He turned back to his computer and resumed his typing.

Her first were clenched so tight that her knuckles turned white. Her angry tears were now spilling down her face.

"Did you replace your heart with a robotic one, too?" she whispered bitterly.

"I'm thinking about it," Donnie replied.

April sighed in defeat and wiped away her tears. "Yeah, well," she mumbled, "thanks for _nothing_." She then stomped out of the lab and slammed the door shut.

* * *

She wept bitterly as she sat in her car, not caring about the people who would walk by and glance at her.

That wasn't the Donnie she knew. That wasn't even a person. That was a cold, emotionless machine.

 _I'm so sorry, Karai…Master Splinter…Mikey…_

She prayed that Casey and Karai were having more luck than she was.

 **Well, Donnie has made his decision. What about Raph and Leo? Will they hear Casey and Karai's pleas and agree to come back…?**


	6. The Green Man

**Because I absolutely adore Raph and Mikey's bromance, I put more effort into this chapter than I did the previous ones.**

 **WARNING: DISTURBING CONTENT. I'm rating this particular chapter "M" just to be safe.**

 _ **Thirty years ago…**_

" _Raph?" April softly knocked on the bathroom door. Her Turtle friend had locked himself in there after the funeral. Neither she nor Casey has seen him for nearly two hours now, and she was beginning to worry about him. "Raph, please open the door."_

 _Still no response from him._

 _She sighed and leaned against the door. "Raph, listen…I miss Mikey, too. And I know that out of everyone here, you miss him the most. But we have to remain strong, because that's what Mikey would've wanted. It's hard, I know, but I believe in you. 'Cause you're the strongest person I know. You know, Mikey always looked up to you. He'd brag to me about how you were always so brave and strong, and how you would chase away the monsters in his room when you were kids. He couldn't have asked for a better brother. And I know you feel guilty about what happened to him, but you didn't fail him, Raph. But you will if you continue to act this way. So let's…"_

" _RAPH! WHAT DID YOU_ _ **DO**_ _?!"_

 _April's heart jumped as she heard Casey scream outside the farmhouse. She raced downstairs and slammed the front door open. Casey was kneeling in front of the remains of the pyre, and when he saw her standing on the porch, he frantically gestured for her to come over. "RED! GET OVER HERE!"_

 _As she got closer, she saw Raph lying in the pile of ashes, sobbing and curled up in fetal position. His arms, which were bleeding greatly and covered in deep cuts, sheltered his face from her. April's heart broke as she realized that he had cut himself in grief._

" _Oh, Raph," she whispered as she knelt on the ground and slowly reached out to him. "Why…?"_

" _Red," Casey choked, "his left eye is gone."_

 _April turned to him with widened eyes. "What did you say?" she asked fearfully._

" _Just look."_

 _Hesitantly, she grabbed his arms, being extremely careful not to touch the scars. She gently pulled them away from his face, and what she saw before her nearly made her faint._

 _A huge, ugly scar went down the left side of his face, and he eye had been sliced in half._

 _"I'm going to get Donnie!" she told Casey and was about to get up, but then she was stopped by Raph's small and broken voice._

 _"Don't bother."_

 _She looked back down at him and watched as he slowly opened his only good eye. A dull, sorrowful emerald orb looked into her blue ones._

 _"I don't even feel it," he whimpered. "The only pain I feel right now is in here." He pointed to his chest and started to cry again. "And I can't make it go away…no matter what I do!"_

 _April choked on a sob and caressed the dome of his head. "Raph, listen to me. We've got to stop the bleeding or you'll die. Do you understand? Now I'm going to get Donnie. I'll be right back." She then turned to Casey. "Look after him, Jones."_

 _Casey nodded and watched her run to the barn. He leaned in close to Raph's ear and soothingly rubbed his shoulder. "Just hang in there, buddy, okay?" he whispered. "Help is on the way."_

 _Raph only continued to rub his face in the ashes and mumble incoherently to himself. But by reading his lips, Casey could tell that he was whispering his baby brother's name over and over again…_

* * *

 **Present**

Casey now stood in front of the abandoned farmhouse, where he shared both wonderful and painful memories with his Turtle bros. He stared sadly at the very same spot where the pyre once stood.

Donnie operated on Raph after he cut himself, but he was unable to save his eye. The hothead didn't wait to heal and ran away as soon as he got off that operating table. Casey tried to stop him, but he could only watch as Raph disappeared into the woods. For the next two days, he and April searched for him, but they eventually gave up. And by the time they arrived back at the farmhouse, Donnie had already packed up and left. He didn't even leave a goodbye note for them to find.

Casey looked back at the woods and sighed. At one point, while he was searching for Raph, he got lost and it took April nearly two hours to find him.

And now he was going to have to venture into the woods on his own.

* * *

"Raph! Raph! It's me! Casey Jones! Where are you?! _Raph_!"

It was already getting close to dark, and he still hadn't found his terrapin friend. His voice was starting to get hoarse from shouting all day. And guess what?

He was lost. Again.

His wife was probably already having problems with Donnie, but he had no choice but to call her and have her come find him. Again.

He pulled out his phone and went to his contacts. He was about to push the button to call April, when suddenly a very large net came down over him. He fell to the ground and panicked, struggling to break himself free.

"Got 'im!"

"A'right!"

A pair of ugly pink feet landed in front of Casey's face, and he could also make out a long pink tail. He lifted his head and saw a mutant possum that was wearing a straw hat and smiling down at him with his jagged yellow teeth.

"Well, he ain't got much meat on his bones, but he'll do," he chuckled. "What do _you_ think, Jez?"

Jez, another mutant possum who wore a red bandana around his neck, appeared next to his friend. "Better than that squirrel we had yesterday," he shrugged. "I call dibs on his legs, Boo."

"Hey, _I_ want his legs! _You_ can have the arms!"

"If I get the arms, then I get the head, too! It's only fair!"

"Okay, okay, we'll spit 'im in half! _That_ will be fair!"

"Um," Casey interrupted their argument, "don't _I_ get a say in this?"

The two possums looked down at Casey and then at each other. "Nope," they simultaneously told him.

Jez pulled out a knife and knelt in front of Casey, who started to get very nervous. "I'll go ahead and cut his throat," he said as his licked his chops. "So that he won't struggle on the way home."

"Hurry up," Boo growled as he looked around. "Do it before _he_ shows up."

Jez roughly grabbed Casey by the hair and held the knife at his throat.

 _No, this can't be it! April! Shadow! Please, God! Don't let it end here! Please! Somebody help! Help! HELP!_ _ **HELP!**_

A spear came flying out of nowhere and pierced right through Jez's chest. Some of the blood had splattered onto Casey's face, who cried out in shock as he frantically wiped it away. Jez made a gurgling sound before his eyes rolled to the back of his head and he fell to the ground dead.

Boo's jaw dropped, his mouth wide open, but all he let out was a pitiful squeak. His ear twitched as he heard the sound of bushes rustling, and he fearfully looked around him, his tail tucked between his shaking legs.

"P-p-please don't hurt me, Green Man!" Boo stuttered. "You-you can have this one! He's all yours! Bon appetite!" As soon as he finished that last sentence, he sprinted away, leaving Casey alone with this "Green Man".

Casey let out shaky breaths as he heard someone else approach him. He closed his eyes tightly as the footsteps got closer and closer. A hand gripped the net and pulled it away from his face, and he heard the sound of the ropes being cut. He opened one eye and saw a red-robed figure, his face hidden by the hood, kneeling over him. The hands that were holding and cutting the net were three-fingered and green.

 _Wait a minute…three fingers? Green? Could it be…?_

Casey had finally been freed, and the figure stood up and crossed his arms, which were wrapped in dirty, torn bandages. There was a jagged, lightning bolt shaped crack on his plastron.

"You're getting rusty, Jones," the stranger chuckled. "I can't believe you let those morons capture you so easily." He pulled back his hood and revealed his face to Casey.

Raph now wore an eyepatch over his left eye, but Casey could still see the same scar that he had inflicted upon himself thirty years ago.

"Raph…!" Casey jumped up and grabbed Raph in a tight bear hug. Raph smirked and wrapped his arms around Casey, as well.

"Good to see you again, Casey."

* * *

"So _this_ is where you live now?"

Raph and Casey were now standing on a raft in the middle of a swamp, floating toward a very large and tall tree. At the top was a simple treehouse with a thatched roof.

"I know it's not a penthouse," Raph gruffly said as the raft reached the base of the tree, "but it's what I call 'home'."

"Hmmm, let's see," Casey rubbed his chin. "A green monster living in a swamp. Now where have I heard this before?"

They both chuckled as they climbed up the ladders leading to the treehouse.

The interior of the house was rather simple: there was a straw bed that had a blanket but no pillows, a black cooking pot that hung over a small pile of wood, and a single window that faced the south. There were several spears leaning against the wall along with a couple of sacks that were full of food.

"Geez, Raph, you really are living the simple life," Casey mumbled. "What, not even a T.V.?"

"T.V. rots the brain, anyway," Raph retorted as he reached inside a sack and pulled out couple of wild radishes. He held out one to his human friend. "Want some?"

"No thanks, man," Casey declined. "I don't eat stuff that grows in a forest."

"Suit yourself," Raph shrugged as he bit off the end of the white root. He then walked over to the straw mattress and sat on it, patting the spot next to him. "Come on, sit down. Make yourself at home."

"I bet you miss pizza," Casey said as he sat down next to Raph, who continued to eat his radish.

"Nah," Raph simply said and continued to eat.

"So, um, you ever get any visitors?"

"No one ever visits the Green Man. They're too afraid of me."

"Why? You don't go around hurting people…do you?" Casey couldn't help but glance at the spears.

"I only hurt those who want to hurt me, like those two possum mutants that tried to eat you. They're afraid of me because I'm stronger than all of them. They wouldn't dare challenge me, 'cause they know they'll lose. You could say that I'm the king of this forest."

"Oh, sure, and this is your luxurious castle," Casey gestured around him.

"I like living this way, Jones," Raph glared at him. "There's no hustle and bustle, no Foot Clan, no _worries_. I don't have to hide in the dirty, smelly sewers anymore. I can be outside whenever I want to. I've lived here for thirty years, and let me assure you, I wouldn't trade my current life for anything. Ever."

"Hey, that's fine, Raph," Casey softly said, gently putting his hand on his friend's shoulder. "I'm not asking you to leave the swamp, 'cause if you're a lot happier here, then you should stay."

Raph's face softened and he looked down at the half-eaten radish in his hands. It was quiet for a moment, before Raph spoke again. "Jones, listen, um," he said quietly, "I just want to apologize for running off like that."

"Hey, man, it's okay," Casey rubbed his shell soothingly. "I completely understand. You were totally traumatized by the whole Mikey thing. We all were."

At the mention of his brother's name, Raph visibly flinched and he bit his lower lip. "How…how are the others?"

Casey sighed. "I don't know. We haven't seen Leo or Donnie since the funeral."

"Hmm. And April?"

"She's doing fine. Oh, and guess what? She's my wife now."

Raph turned to look at him with a wide emerald eye, then gave him a lopsided smile. "Get outta here! For real?!"

Casey smiled back and nodded. "Yep. We got married twenty years ago."

Raph chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. "Man, that's unbelievable."

"What do you mean, unbelievable?" Casey couldn't help but feel a little offended by that.

"Well, let's face it, man, you're no Prince Charming."

"Aw, shut your mouth, Shrek."

The two playfully nudged each other and laughed. For a brief moment, it felt like the good old days. Before that fateful night when the Shredder completely shattered their world. Before Mikey was abruptly taken from them.

Casey swallowed around the lump in his throat. It was now or never.

"Raph, Master Splinter is dying."

His friend looked at him in shock. "He…he is?" his voice cracked.

"Yeah, man. He's not doing so good. Karai's doing everything she can, but…well, it's not enough. And she wants us all to get together and see Splinter one last time, before he passes away." Casey wrapped his arm around Raph's shoulder. "Come on, man. What do you say?"

Raph didn't look at him and stared at the wall instead. He said nothing and tightened his grip on the radish, his hands shaking slightly. He eventually closed his eye and let out a deep sigh.

"I can't."

"Excuse me?"

"I can't. I'm sorry, Casey."

"Look, Raph," Casey looked at him with a serious expression, but he continued to speak softly. "I get it. You hate Master Splinter for choosing Mikey, and you don't have to forgive him. But still…"

"It's not that. I don't…I don't _hate_ Splinter. It's just…" Raph paused and reached up to touch his eyepatch. "I'm afraid that if I go back, I'll be reminded of Mikey again, and of what we once had. And it'll be too much for me, Casey. Yeah, I know I'm acting like a coward, but I…I just can't go back." He then traced the bandages on his arms. "It took me _thirty_ years to find inner peace again. I can't afford to lose it."

"Well, what about Splinter's inner peace?" Casey snapped. "Or April's? There hasn't been a single day that she doesn't worry about you guys. Believe me, I know. And I really hate to say this, man, but if you refuse to go, then Mikey's death would've been for _nothing_."

At this, Raph turned and looked at him with an angry white eye and growled deeply in his throat. Casey instantly regretted saying those words and gulped nervously. "O-okay, calm down, Raph."

"I think it's time you left my house, Jones," Raph venomously said.

Casey knew that he blew it. Why did he have to open his big mouth and screw everything up? "Okay, Raph," he sighed. "I'll leave. But before I do, here. April wanted me to give you this."

He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out the package that April had given him earlier. He handed it to Raph, who stared suspiciously at it.

"What is it?"

"Beats me. She wouldn't even tell me. Just take it."

Raph hesitantly took the package and put it in his lap.

Casey got off the bed and went to the door, stopping to look at Raph for a moment. "Think about it, Raph. Okay? Just think about it." And then he climbed down the ladders, leaving Raph all alone in the treehouse.

Raph shook the package a little, and judging by the sound, whatever was inside wasn't delicate or made of glass. He then proceeded to tear the wrapping off and open the box.

What he saw inside made his heart skip a beat, and a lump formed in his throat.

It was Mikey's favorite teddy bear.

He took it out of the box and gingerly held it in his arms, feeling its soft, fluffy fur with his fingers. He instantly remembered the night he gave this bear to his baby brother.

* * *

 _"Raphie?"_

 _A groggy six year old Raph turned his head and saw Mikey standing next to his bed. "What do ya want, Mikey?" he grumbled._

 _"I had a bad dream again," Mikey sniffled. "Can I sleep with you?"_

 _"No," Raph growled and pulled the blanket over his head._

 _"Pleeeeeeeease?"_

 _"No!"_

 _"Pretty please with sugar on top?"_

 _Raph had had enough and kicked the blanket off, sitting up to scream in Mikey's face. "NO! I'm not gonna say it again! Go away!"_

 _Mikey's blue eyes widened and then were filled with tears. He bit his lower and whispered, "You meanie." He ran out of Raph's room sobbing._

 _Raph merely huffed and laid his head on the pillow, trying to go back to sleep. But the image of Mikey crying would not leave his mind. He sighed in defeat and sat back up. He decided to apologize to Mikey, and just as he was about to jump off the bed, the teddy bear that lay on the floor along with his other toys caught his eye. He then got an idea._

* * *

 _"Mikey?" he whispered to his baby brother, who had pulled the blanket over him and was still crying softly to himself._

 _"What?" the blanket muffled Mikey's voice._

 _"Here, you can have this," he sofly said as he laid the teddy bear on the bed._

 _Mikey peeked his head out of the blanket and looked down at the bear. "But, Raphie, that's_ your _teddy bear."_

 _"Yeah, well," Raph shrugged his shoulders and gave him a smirk. "I'm too old to sleep with stuffed animals anyway. 'Sides, ya need it more than I do." He gently patted Mikey on the head and was about to leave, when he felt two arms wrap around him in a tight hug. Mikey laid his cheek on his brother's shell, smiling to himself._

 _"Thank you, Raphie," Mikey sniffled. "I love you. I love you."_

* * *

Raph let out a sob and hugged the bear closer to his plastron, a single silver tear spilling out of his eye.

 _Thank you, Raphie. I love you. I love you._

He started to cry harder and slowly rocked back and forth.

 _Bye, guys. I love…_

Finally, he was wailing at the top of his lungs.

Even the shrilling sounds of the crickets and cicadas could not drown out the Green Man's cries of anguish.

 **Well, that's all for now until after Christmas Day. Gonna be spending time with my stepmom's family in Springdale. Enjoy Christmas with your families and appreciate what you have.**

 **Merry Christmas!**


	7. A Deaf Ear

**Hope you had a wonderful Christmas! Well, here's the next chapter! Another character from the Mirage comics will appear in this one! You'll soon see who... 0.0**

 **Also, I'm not good at describing battles. Just saying...**

"Who are you guys?"

"We're the Komodo Dragons, gramps."

"Yeah, we rule this part of New York."

Sixty-nine year old Vincent Walter, owner of the _Aunty's Cottage_ grocery store, was face to face with two young men wearing black leather clothing and pointing guns at him.

Vincent wasn't the least bit intimidated by these punks.

"Komodo Dragons?" he snorted. "Never heard of you. Who's your boss? Ice N Dice? Draco? The Jester?"

"Nah," the taller kid named Bones said. "Our main man's King Komodo."

The shorter kid, whose name was Skull, drank a bottle of vodka. "Ahh. Yep, Komodo's the king of this neighborhood. Big mutant. Can crush a guy's skull with one stomp."

"Lot of teeth, too," Bones added with a chuckle.

"Don't you kids have anything better to do with your lives?" Vincent crossed his arms.

"We make 80 grand a _week_ , old man," Skull growled. "That's more than what you make in a year."

"Where do you get the money, anyway? Robbing grocery stores? You think stealing from your elders makes you men?"

"Enough yapping," Bones slammed his palm on the desk and gestured toward the cashier with his handgun. "Open it, or we blow your brains out, smart guy."

"Sure," Vincent reached for the cashier with one hand, but then whipped out a shotgun with the other, aiming it at the two robbers. They immediately dropped their handguns and put their hands up, slowly backing away from the old man.

"Wh-oa, easy, man," Bones nervously said. "Ain't no need for that."

"You two made a big mistake trying to steal from _me_ ," Vincent grinned. "I'm not your average grocery store owner. I also happen to be a veteran. So don't try my patience."

Vincent then heard a growling noise from behind him. He turned and saw an enormous, muscular mutant komodo dragon that was looming over him and snarling. Immediately he pointed the gun at the lizard, but then it grabbed the weapon with its jaws and jerked it out of his hands. With one powerful bite, the gun was split in half.

The beast grabbed Vincent by the neck and lifted him up, choking him.

"Ko...Komodo...I presume?" Vincent choked out.

"That's _King_ Komodo to you," the mutant sneered. "And you made a big mistake pointing a gun at _me_. Either you've very brave or you're very stupid."

"Boss!" Skull gulped. "What are you doing here?"

"Making sure you rookies don't screw this one up, too," Komodo glared at the two robbers. "Last time you cost me 15 grand." He picked up the cashier and threw against the wall. It broke into pieces and the coins and dollar bills were scattered all over the floor. "Get the cash. I'll take care of Rambo here."

He leaned his face close to Vincent's, the tips of his forked tongue touching the old man's cheek. "You're willing to die for this country. But are you willing to die for this store?"

The sound of objects dropping caught everyone's attention. They saw a buch of chicken soup cans rolling across the floor.

"Bones, check it out," Komodo commanded. Said robber immediately searched the aisles for any intruders.

Seconds later they heard a bloodcurdling scream.

A mysterious figure then stepped out of the shadows and was holding twin katanas, one of which was dripping with someone's blood. When he got closer to the trio, they realized that it was the infamous vigilante the Serpent.

"Oh, snap!" Skull cowered away from the approaching warrior. "It's that Serpent dude! Screw this! I'm outta here!" The robber then sprinted toward the exit. But before he could reach the doors, a couple of shurikens hit him in the back. He fell to the ground, twitching and moaning in pain.

Leo then turned his attention to the mutant crime boss and gave him a predatory smirk. "Long time, no see, Komodo."

"Leonardo," Komodo narrowed his eyes and growled. He dropped the store owner, who scotted away and reached for the phone. "You know, I haven't had the chance to thank you for cutting off my tail." He pointed behind him at the stump that used to be his long magnificent tail.

"Your head is next," Leo pointed his sword at the huge lizard.

"Not before I bite off yours," Komodo smirked before he lifted the desk and threw it at the Turtle, who jumped out of the way in time. Komodo then leapt through the storefront window, shattering it. Leo was about to give chase when he heard Skull groaning.

"Oops," he said as he walked to where Skull lay and knelt over him. "Almost forgot about you."

"Yes, hello," Vincent talked to the police on the other line. "The Komodo Dragons tried to rob my store. Their boss got away, but one of the robbers is still here with..." He paused when he saw Leo place the sword at Skull's throat and then slit it. "Oh, my god," he whispered.

Leo sheathed his swords and headed to the broken window. "Sorry about the mess," he said as he passed by Vincent. The old man stared in shock as a puddle of blood formed around Skull's head.

* * *

The mutant lizard arrived at the junkyard, mountains of garbage and debris towering over him. He cautiously looked around him, listening for the predator that was hunting him.

"What's the matter, Komodo? Is his Highness too afraid to face the Serpent?"

Komodo could hear Leo's voice taunting him, but he was nowhere in sight.

"I'm not afraid!" Komodo called out. " _You're_ the one hiding behind all this garbage! You truly are a snake...a cowardly snake!"

He heard a can falling down a pile of garbage, and he turned in just time to see Leo diving toward him, his swords drawn out. But instead of jumping out of the way, Komodo did something that even surprised Leo: he leapt right at him! Before Leo could react, Komodo headbutted him, causing the Turtle to see stars and fall to the ground.

The dazed Leonardo continued to lie on the ground as Komodo stomped toward him.

"I've been waiting a long time for this," Komodo chuckled darkly and cracked his knuckles. He reached down to grab Leo with his large hand...

A foot suddenly kicked him in the snout. He cried out in pain and shock and stumbled backwards, holding his hands to his nose. He opened his eyes and saw a woman with long black hair and wearing silver armor with aurburn material underneath. On her breastplate was the Hamato symbol. She glared at him and unsheathed her swords.

"Stay away from him," she growled.

Komodo chuckled. "Who's this?" he asked Leo, who was regaining consciousness. "Your girlfriend?"

Karai only charged at him. She kicked and stabbed at him, but he blocked and avoided her blows. At one point, while she delivered a kick, he grabbed her ankle and threw her against the side of an old, rusted car. She groaned and gripped her shoulder in pain.

Komodo licked his chops and stomped toward the kunoichi...

...then a sword pierced right through his chest.

Komodo gasped and his whole body twitched, before he fell to the ground. Leo looked down at him with cold white eyes as he raised his sword over his head.

"Told you I'd have your head," he said before he brought the sword down, decapitating the mutant lizard right in front of Karai.

She put her hand to her mouth in shock, her brown eyes wide and full of fear.

Leo looked up and gave her a soft smile. "Good to see you again, Miwa." He walked over to her and offered her hand. Hesitantly, she took it and got back on her feet.

"Y-yeah," she said nervously. "Good to see you, too. Listen, Leo, we need to talk."

* * *

"I like your new look, by the way."

Leo and Karai sat on a rooftop, staring at the city lights and the moon hovering above them.

She looked over at him and smiled. "It reminds me of when you fought crime with me and Shinigami years ago."

Leo nodded and traced the snake tattoo on his plastron. "You could say that you inspired me."

Karai's smile turned into a frown and she lowered her eyes sadly. "We never _killed_ anyone, though," she whispered.

"I know," Leo said impassively. "And that's why they kept coming back. We never actually got the job done. We just toyed with them."

"Our _job_ is to protect this city," Karai snapped. "Not to...to _execute_ criminals."

"I _am_ protecting this city," Leo retorted. "The less criminals there are in New York, the safer the civilians will be."

"Well, they sure don't feel safe. They're calling you a criminal, too."

"I know I am."

"...What?"

"I know killing people is wrong, even if I do have the best of intentions. But someone has to get their hands dirty in order to keep everyone else safe."

"Leo," Karai looked at him sadly and put a hand on his shoulder. "You don't have to stoop to their level."

"Apparently, I do," Leo looked at her with cold eyes. "Sure, I could turn them in. But what good would that do? They'd be back on the streets soon afterwards and continue to terrorize the innocent."

"I see your point. But still it's..."

"That's not why you came to see me, is it?"

She sighed and hugged her arms. "No, it isn't. Father is dying."

At the mention of his former Sensei and adoptive father, Leo's eyes widened and he bit his lower lip. But then he cleared his throat and regained his composure. "He is, huh?" he calmly asked. "How long does he have left?"

Karai closed her eyes. "There's no telling. And I know you can't forgive Splinter for what he did thirty years ago. I'm not asking you to, but I _am_ asking you to come and see him one last time before he dies."

It was silent for a moment before Leo spoke in a low, cold voice. "Why should I?"

"I knew you would say that," Karai rubbed her temples. "Well, for one, it's what Mikey would've wanted."

" _Don't_ ," Leo glared at her and gritted his teeth, "talk to me about Mikey. What do _you_ know? He wasn't even your brother. He was _mine_. And that _rat_ sacrificed him to that...monster. Mikey didn't deserve to die like that."

"You're right, Leo," Karai softly said. "But I _do_ know one thing about Mikey: he loved his family so much, and he'd be heartbroken to see you guys so broken and resentful toward each other."

Leo didn't respond and only looked down at the streets.

"And I know that, despite how much you may resent him," Karai continued, "you wouldn't want to deny a dying old man inner peace."

"He doesn't deserve it," Leo got up and started to walk away. "He can rot for all I care."

"Leo!" Karai ran after him and grabbed his arm. "Wait! If you won't do it for Splinter or me, then do it for Mikey, so he can rest in peace!"

Leo's expression softened as he thought about his late baby brother. How he threw water balloons at them just to ease the tension, even though he knew that he'd get a scolding or even a shell wedgie afterwards. How he cooked breakfast, lunch, and dinner for them and told jokes to brighten their day. How he'd give his family hope by remaining optimistic and reminding them that every cloud has a silver lining.

How he had always wanted to make his father proud of him.

Leo felt anger boiling in him once again.

* * *

 _"As a leader, you will learn that there is no right and wrong. Only choices."_

 _"So you could have chosen any of us?"_

 _"Yes."_

 _"Even Mikey?!"_

 _"No, that would've been wrong."_

* * *

 _"You made a wise decision, Michelangelo."_

 _"HUH?"_

 _"Yes, I never thought I'd hear myself say that, either."_

* * *

 _"And what about Mikey? What are they gonna do to him up there in that freaky ship?_ Probe _him?"_

 _"First, we must destroy the black-hole machine._ That _is the priority. If we cannot stop this weapon, the entire world is doomed."_

* * *

 _"I choose Michelangelo."_

Leo growled and jerked his arm out of Karai's grasp. She gasped and looked at him with eyes full of hurt.

"Leo..." she begged.

He didn't turn to look at her. "Mikey mattered so little to Splinter," he quietly said, "because he couldn't live up to his expectations or focus more on the missions. He never said so, but it was obvious that Sensei viewed Mikey as an embarrassment to the Hamato Clan." She heard him sigh shakily. "But my brothers and I...we loved Mikey for who he was, despite all of his flaws. In our eyes, he _was_ perfect."

When he turned his head to look at her, she saw unshed tears in his blue eyes. "But I guess that wasn't enough for Splinter. He didn't even consider how _we'd_ feel about losing Mikey." He looked down at the ground and clenched his fists. "He didn't even _watch_...the coward."

He closed his eyes tight, a single tear flowing down his cheek.

" _He's_ the reason Mikey's resting in the first place," he whispered.

Karai had never seen Leo cry before, and it absolutely broke her heart. She tried to control her own tears and took a deep breath. "Well, what...what would _you_ have done if you were in Splinter's place?"

He quickly wiped his eyes and turned to face her. "If it were up to _me_?"

She nodded her head.

"I would have chosen you," he said without hesitation.

"...Oh." She tried to hide the hurt she was feeling right now.

Leo continued to speak with an impassive expression on his face. "You probably already know this, but I had strong feelings for you back then. But they weren't strong enough for me to choose you over _any_ of my brothers. I'm sorry, Miwa, but that's the truth."

"I see," Karai said before she sighed deeply. "So I guess the answer's still 'no'?"

"What do you think?" he scoffed as he crossed his arms.

Her eyes brimmed with tears and she proceeded to walk past him, but she stopped for a moment to look directly into his face. "Well, if you change your mind, you know where to find us."

He watched as she jumped onto the next rooftop and eventually disappeared into the night. He sat back down on the edge and pulled out his katana. He stared at his reflection off the blade.

 _"You should be enjoying your victory. You did a great thing tonight, Leonardo. You saved everyone."_

 _"Not everyone. I tried to get Karai out of Shredder's control. I failed Sensei. I'm sorry."_

 _"We saved her once, Leonardo. Perhaps we can save her again. And now you show great gifts as a healer. Being at the edge of your life gave you a power that few martial artists can tap. I am proud of you, my son."_

Leo sighed and put the sword aside. He then looked up at the ever-bright moon in the sky.

He could feel the tears coming back again.

 _I'm_ still _a failure._

* * *

"So he said, 'no'?"

 _Yes._

April sat at the kitchen table with phone in her hand. She came home with the hope that Casey had been able to convince Raph to return to New York. But as she had feared, the hothead refused to come back.

And now she was hearing from Karai that Leo had turned a deaf ear to their pleas.

Defeated, she covered her face with her hand and let out a sob.

 _April. April, listen to me. You tried. We all did. We'll...we'll get through this, okay?_

"O-okay, Karai," she sniffled wetly. "Tell Master Splinter 'goodnight' for me."

 _I will. Goodnight, April._

She hung up and went upstairs to her bedroom where her husband waited for her.

* * *

Shadow yawned and rubbed her eyes as she went downstairs.

It was 2 am in the morning, and she was craving for a late-night snack. As she approached the kitchen, she heard a loud munching sound. She peeked in and saw a dark figure sitting on the edge of the kitchen counter.

"Dad?"

She reached for the light switch on the wall and flipped it.

She then screamed at the top of her lungs.

 **Uh-oh! An intruder! Who is it? You will find out in the next chapter!**

 **Also, the quotes that I've borrowed from the show came from the following episodes:**

 **Rise Of The Turtles Part 2**

 **It Came From The Depths**

 **Annihilation Earth**

 **The Deadly Venom**

 **Also, the grocery store part was inspired by a scene from the movie The Dark Knight Returns: Part 2.**


	8. Shadows Of The Past

" ** _SHADOW?!_** "

Casey sprinted downstairs with a hockey stick in his hand. He ran into the kitchen and saw Shadow huddled in a corner, shaking heavily and using a chair as a shield. She looked very close to crying.

He then followed her gaze to the intruder. But when he saw who it was, he lowered his hockey stick and his jaw dropped.

"RAPH?!"

The Turtle was sitting on the kitchen counter and eating out of a large bag of potato chips. He looked at Casey with one green eye and waved his hand.

"'Sup, Jones?" he said with his mouth full of chips.

"Seriously?!" Casey angrily said. "You couldn't have at least _knocked_?!"

Raph shrugged and continued to eat. "It's 2 in the morning. I didn't want to wake you guys up. Besides, ninjas don't 'knock'."

"HONEY?!"

April ran into the kitchen in her robe, her hair all messed up. "What's going on?!"

Raph chuckled at the sight of his old friend. "Looking good, April."

When the reporter saw the Turtle, she put her hand to her mouth in shock and her blue eyes brimmed with tears. "Raph?" she whispered. The Green Man smirked and greeted her with a nod.

"Mom...?"

April heard her daughter whimper and immediately ran to her. "Oh, honey, it's okay," she softly said, wrapping her arms around Shadow. "It's just an old friend."

Shadow peeked over her mom's shoulder and looked directly at the mutant. He smiled gently at her and waved, but she only hid her face and made another whimpering sound. Raph looked genuinely hurt.

* * *

The Turtle wolfed down another batch of pancakes and gulped down another glass of milk. Casey sat next to him at the kitchen table, having only a cup of coffee.

"Geez, Raph," Casey chuckled as he took a sip, "you act as though you haven't eaten in days. Whatever happened to the whole, 'I don't miss pizza or anything else that civilization offers' attitude?"

"Can't talk," Raph mumbled. "Eating."

April placed a plate full of eggs and bacon in front of Raph, who immediately scarfed it down. She wiped her sweating forehead. "Phew! See, this is why I never worked at a restaurant. I'm just not waitress material."

"You can take down aliens, monsters, and mutants," Casey smirked and raised an eyebrow at her, "but you can't handle hungry people?"

She playfully punched her husband on the shoulder before pouring Raph another glass of milk. "So why did you decide to come back, Raph?"

Raph's expression became somber and he put down his fork. "Well, after Casey's visit, I've been doing some thinking...well, meditating, actually. And I've come to realize that it'd be selfish and cruel of me not to come see Master Splinter. I mean, he's my _dad_ , after all. I owe it to him."

April smiled tearfully at her friend and put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm so proud of you, Raph."

"Yeah, same here, buddy," Casey gave him a friendly slap on the shell.

"Yeah, well," Raph took a sip of his milk and wiped his white "mustache" off, "that's not the only reason why I came back. I'm worried about Donnie and Leo. _Especially_ Leo."

"Oh," April quietly said with a sadden expression. "So you know about...?"

Raph sighed and nodded. "Yeah."

"I'm so sorry, Raph."

"I just hope that he'll listen to me."

"Yeah, well, good luck with that," Casey crossed his arms. "Karai tried talking to him, but he flat out refused to listen."

"Really?" Raph turned to April. "And I take it that Donnie was just as stubborn?"

"Oh, yeah," April sighed.

"Great," he mumbled and rubbed his temples. "So I'm really the only one?"

"There's still hope, Raph. I mean, they might change their minds, too."

"Yeah, hopefully."

"Hey, uh, Mom?"

They all turned their heads to see Shadow standing in the doorway, nervously glancing at Raph and rubbing her arms.

"What is it, sweetie?" April got out of her chair and stood in front of Shadow.

"Um, could you pour me a bowl of cereal?"

"Well, why don't you do it yourself and have a seat with us?" April gestured toward Casey and Raph.

"I, uh," Shadow stuttered and looked away, "I'd-I'd rather not."

"Shadow," Casey sternly said, "don't be rude to our guest."

"'Guest'?" She pointed at the sitting mutant. "He broke into our house and scared the living crap out of me!"

"Shadow!" April scolded.

"No, she's right, April," Raph softly said before glancing at Shadow and giving her a smile. "Sorry I scared you, kid. Didn't think that you'd be up." He got out of his chair and walked toward the nervous teenager. He held out a hand for her to shake. "I'm Raphael. But you can just call me 'Raph' for short."

Shadow only stared at the big mutant and took a step back, her whole body shaking slightly. A whimper escaped her throat and her green eyes started to water.

April could see that her daughter needed more time and rubbed her back comfortingly. "It's okay, Shadow. Go back upstairs. I'll make your cereal."

Shadow looked at her mother gratefully and mouthed the words, "thank you" before running back upstairs.

Raph sighed heavily and rubbed the back of his neck. "I guess I can't blame her for being so scared of me."

"It's not your fault, Raph," April gently told her.

"Well, not all of it," Casey mumbled and picked up his newspaper.

April glared at her husband before turning back to Raph. "Shadow has this phobia of mutants."

Raph's eyes widened. "Phobia of mutants?"

She nodded and turned to her husband. "Casey, could you explain it to Raph while I make Shadow's cereal?"

"Sure thing, hon," Casey said as he put the newspaper down and gestured toward Raph's seat. "Sit down, man. It's a long story."

"Um, okay?" Raph shrugged and sat back down.

Casey cleared his throat. "Now I know you were in Northampton when it happened, but fifteen years ago, there was this intense final battle between the Mutanimals and the Kraang."

"Battle?" Raph leaned in closer and started to panic. "Well, did they all make it? The Mutanimals, I mean?"

"Well," Casey looked down at the table sadly, "Leatherhead died about thirteen years before the battle. He was, you know, just too old. Plus, we think that Mikey's death was a devastating blow to him and his heart couldn't take it. But yeah, there weren't any casualties on our side, man."

Raph let out a sigh of relief, though he was saddened to hear about the old alligator's tragic end. He saw April walking out of the kitchen with a bowl of cereal in her hands.

"Anyway," Casey continued, "at one point, the Mutanimals infiltrated the Kraang's headquarters, and they found this human infant sleeping in a chamber."

"So, wait, Shadow isn't your biological daughter?"

"Well, uh, not _my_ biological daughter. But you could say that she's...kind of April's."

"...You've lost me, Jones."

"According to what Dr. Rockwell told us, Shadow has the same exact DNA as April's mother."

"April's mother? Wait...hold up...are you telling me...?"

"Yep. Shadow is the clone of Mrs. O'Neil."

Raph's jaw dropped and he let out a laugh of disbelief. "You've got to be kiddin' me."

"No, man," Casey chuckled softly. "I'm not kiddin' you."

"Well, did they ever find the _real_ Mrs. O'Neil?"

"Sort of."

"Sort of?"

"Well, they...found parts of her...in separate jars."

The Turtle's face became pale and he gulped. "Does, uh...does Shadow know about her origins?"

"No. It's probably best if she doesn't. She's already having issues of her own."

"Like what kind of issues?"

Casey smirked at Raph. "Like, anger management issues."

Raph couldn't help but bark out a laugh. "Really! Well, I can definitely relate. But what does this have to do with her mutant phobia?"

"Slash was the one who busted her out of that chamber, so he was the first thing she saw."

Now everything made sense.

"Oh," Raph quietly said.

"I feel bad for the big buy," Casey sighed. "I mean, it wasn't his fault. But from her perspective, he looked pretty scary. And it wasn't just him. She was scared of the other Mutanimals, too. After they won the battle, they brought her to us, and because she is Mrs. O'Neil's clone, she naturally bonded with April. We raised her as our daughter ever since."

"Wow," Raph whispered and rubbed the back of his neck. "That is quite a story. It pains me to see her so scared of me, though."

"It'll take some time," Casey smiled at his friend and placed a hand on his shoulder. "But she'll eventually learn to trust you."

* * *

"How long is he staying here?" Shadow asked April as she ate her cereal at her computer desk.

"Not long, honey," April sat on the edge of Shadow's bed. "He'll only be here for a couple hours, and then your father and I are taking him to see his father."

"So he's...one of those mutant Turtle friends of yours? The ones in your picture?"

"Yep," April smiled at her. "He won't hurt you, Shadow. I promise."

"I know, I just," Shadow looked down her empty bowl in shame, "I just can't help it, you know?"

April rubbed her daughters back soothingly. "I know, sweetie. I know. But maybe you should give Raph a chance? He just wants to be your friend."

Shadow looked up at her mother and gulped nervously. "But he isn't the one with the...temper?"

April chuckled and got off the bed. "Well, then, maybe you two have more in common than you thought."

She walked out the bedroom, leaving Shadow alone at the desk. The teenager looked down thoughtfully at her bowl.

* * *

 _He came back?!_

"He sure did."

 _Well, that's...that's_ wonderful _news, April! Father will be so happy to see him!_

"I know. And boy, wait until Raph sees how big Chompy has gotten."

 _He's in for a big surprise, that's for sure._

"Yeah."

 _April, listen, I...I can't thank you enough for doing this._

"You don't need to thank me, Karai. I love Master Splinter, too, and I want to help him heal. I only wish we could've brought all three of them back to the lair with us."

 _You did your best. That's all that matters._

"Well, see you in a couple of hours."

 _Can't wait! Bye!_

* * *

"You ready, Raph?" Casey asked as he put on his hockey jacket.

Raph nodded. "You bet."

"All right, then," April slung the strap of her purse over her shoulder. "Let's go."

"Wait!"

Shadow ran into the living room, wearing her backpack and black hoodie.

"I'm, uh, I'm coming with you guys."

Her parents looked at her in shock.

"Honey, are..." April spoke softly to her daughter, "are you _sure_ that you want to come with us? There will be a lot of mutants where we're going."

"And a giant space turtle that's about the size of a hippo," Casey added. He noticed his wife glaring at him. "What? She has to know!"

"I'll...I'll be okay, Mom," Shadow gave her a small smile. "I think it's about time I started facing my fears. Besides, I want to learn more about your friends, 'cause they're part of the family, too, right?"

Her mother smiled and hugged her. "I'm so proud of you, honey."

Casey joined in on the hug. "We _both_ are." He looked over at Raph and motioned for him to come over. "Group hug, Raph?"

Raph chuckled and held his hands up. "Uh, no thanks."

 **If you guessed that Raph was the intruder, then you guessed right! Your prize is a free hug! Sorry, that's all I got...**

 **So Shadow is Mrs. O'Neil's clone...bet you weren't expecting that. :)**

 **Also, tomorrow Korea will be airing the season 4 finale...**

 **Cue the music!**

 _ **We're leaving together**_

 _ **But still it's farewell**_

 _ **And maybe we'll come back**_

 _ **To earth, who can tell?**_

 _ **I guess there is no one to blame**_

 _ **We're leaving ground**_

 _ **Will things ever be the same again?**_

 _ **IT'S THE FINAL COUNTDOWN!**_

 _ **THE FINAL COUNTDOWN!**_

 **"The Final Countdown" by Europe...good song :)**


	9. The Warrior Comes Home

**I'm still recovering from the season 4 finale. For a while, I was in "mourning", but I'm doing better now. So here's the next chapter. :)**

"So gross…so gross…so gross…!"

"It's not _that_ bad, kid."

The group walked through the sewer tunnels, with Raph leading the way. Shadow could not stand the smell, and she nearly threw up when she saw the dirty sewage water. When she volunteered to go to with them, she knew that she'd be going into the sewers. But still, she wasn't prepared for _this_. No way.

"We're almost there, Shadow," April told her daughter.

"Believe it or not, you'll get used to it," Casey added with a chuckle. "Your mother and I did."

"Eeugh!" Shadow covered her nose and her eyes started to water.

Raph glanced back at the teen and chuckled.

"Raphael?"

The Turtle looked ahead of him and saw a woman with long black hair standing at the end of the tunnel. She looked familiar...

"Wait," Raph squinted his eyes. "Karai?"

She nodded and approached him. "Thanks for coming back, Raph," she smiled and placed her hand on his shoulder. "Father will be so happy to see you."

Raph smiled back at her. "Thanks for taking care of him all these years."

"Yo, Karai!" Casey walked over to them and offered her his hand. "Good to see you again!"

She took his hand and shook it. "Good to see you, too, Jones." She noticed Shadow standing behind him. "Oh, and who's this?"

"Shadow Jones," the teen politely shook Karai's hand. "It's nice to finally meet you, Karai."

"Same here. So you're April and Casey's daughter?"

Shadow nodded, but unbeknownst to her, Raph glanced at Casey uneasily. Casey only shook his head and put a finger to his lips.

* * *

When he stepped into the lair for the first time in thirty years, the memories immediately flashed in his mind. He and his family were watching T.V. in the living room and laughing. Mikey was humming happily and fixing something weird yet delicious for him in the kitchen. Leo was challenging him to beat the high score on the pinball machine. Donnie was running excitedly out of the lab and showing off his latest invention.

Raph felt a lump form in his throat. Those certainly were the good old days.

"Hey," he heard Casey say, "is it just me, or is that large pile of blankets over there moving?"

He then noticed the pile that Casey was speaking of in front of the T.V., and it slowly moved up and down, as if something was sleeping underneath. The pile was _huge_...

Karai giggled and whistled. Immediately, the creature emerged out of the blankets, revealing itself to the group.

"CHOMPY?!" Raph couldn't believe his eyes! (Or eye).

Hearing his "mama's" voice once again made the turtle's tail wag like crazy and he charged at the group. Shadow shrieked as she hid behind her parents, while Casey yelped and hid behind April. The reporter rolled her eyes.

Chompy jumped on top of Raph, who let out an "oof!" and landed on his shell. The giant turtle nuzzled Raph and licked his face with his long tongue.

Raph laughed and wrapped his arms around Chompy's neck. "Chompy! Look at you! You're _huge_! Aww, I missed you, too, buddy." He gently kissed the tip of Chompy's nose. "I'm sorry I left you behind. I was really messed up for a while. But I won't leave you again. I promise." The giant turtle let out a happy growl.

"Raph," Karai walked over to the two and knelt down to pet Chompy. "I don't mean to interrupt this touching reunion, but..."

"I know," Raph quietly said. "So where is he?"

"I'll go get him," Karai stood back up and went into the dojo.

Raph bit his lower lip and continued to pet Chompy. April could tell that he was really nervous, so she knelt down next to him and gave him a hug. "Raph, it's okay," she gently told him.

"I _abandoned_ him, April," Raph whimpered.

"Casey and I weren't there for him, either," she said. "But even so, he still loves you. He loves _all_ of us. And all that matters is that we're here for him _now._ "

They both heard the tapping of a cane and turned their heads.

Karai was supporting the elderly Splinter as he slowly walked into the living room. He lifted his head and his eyes widened as he saw their guests. But he nearly fell to the floor when he saw his son Raphael. Luckily, Karai caught him in time, and she whispered words of comfort in his ear.

"Go to him, Raph," April whispered to Raph, who gulped and slowly stood up. His legs shaking and his breathing heavy, he took sloppy steps toward his father. His heart pounded as he got closer.

Splinter had his ears way back and his hands were shaking greatly. Karai soothingly rubbed his shoulders and kissed his furry cheek. "It's all right, Father," Raph heard her say.

Finally, the Turtle was only two meters away from his father.

The two stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity.

Splinter slowly approached his son and reached a shaky hand out to him. Raph wanted to grab it but he could not even move his arm. He could only remain still as his father's hand got closer to his face.

The rat gently touched his son's eyepatch and he let out a shaky sigh.

Raph finally found the strength to lift his arm and put his own hand over Splinter's. He leaned in close to his touch.

"Father," his voice quivered and a tear was building up in his right eye.

"My son," Splinter's voice was so raspy and broken it ripped Raph's heart right in half.

"I'm so sorry, Sensei. I should've been there for you, but instead I ran away and hid from you like a coward." A tear flowed down his cheek. "I'm so ashamed of myself. I've failed Mikey _and_ you. Forgive me...!" He choked on a sob and gripped his father's hand even tighter.

Using his other hand, Splinter rubbed Raph's tear away with his thumb. "No, Raphael. Forgive _me_." He tenderly kissed Raph's forehead, his long whiskers tickling his scaly skin. When he pulled away, tears streamed down his face, soaking his fur. "I've failed you and your brothers, especially Michelangelo. I know I do not deserve your forgiveness, but my heart soars with joy to see your face once again."

Raph buried his face in Splinter's neck and wrapped his arms around him, breathing in the scent that used to comfort him as a child. "I _do_ forgive you," he said, his voice muffled.

Splinter's ears perked up and there was a surprised look on his face. "What...what did you say...?"

Raph turned his head aside and said in a louder voice, "I _do_ forgive you, Father. And Mikey forgives you." He pulled away and gave Splinter a loving smile. "He sends his love, by the way."

For a moment, Splinter stared at Raph with shaky eyes and his ears slowly sank back. Then he suddenly let out a heart wrenching wail and his legs gave away. Luckily, Raph still had his arms around him and caught him before he fell to the floor.

Raph rubbed his sobbing father's back and allowed him to cry in his plastron. He leaned in closer to Splinter's ear and whispered comforting Japanese words to him. Karai, of course, understood every single word and she breathed in shakily, her tears coming down uncontrollably. April's heart warmed as she watched the two reconcile, tears spilling from her eyes, as well. She felt Casey wrap an arm around her waist and gently kiss the top of her head. Even Shadow was moved by the strong love the two mutants had for each other, and she felt her eyes burn with unshed tears. She didn't even notice Chompy sniff her from behind, and when she felt the tip of his tongue touch her hand, she yelped in surprise.

* * *

Splinter and Raph knelt in front of Mikey's altar in the dojo, silently praying with their eyes closed and their heads bowed.

April peeked behind the door and smiled fondly at them. She may have not been able to convince Donnie or Leo to come back, but at least she got through to Raph.

She knew that of his three brothers, Raph was closest to Mikey. Sure, Mikey bugged the living heck out of him. Sure, Raph kind of bullied him. But that's what typical brothers do: fight and poke at each other. Some argued that Raph and Leo had the strongest bond, and on the surface, that seemed true. But Mikey had a special place in Raph's heart. He understood Raph better than anybody, and he knew just what the hotheaded Turtle needed whenever he was in an emotional state. During the Kraang's invasion on New York, when Raph had nearly lost it, Mikey was brave enough to approach the savage Turtle and calm him down with a warm embrace and a few comforting words.

Mikey had told her the story of how he was given the teddy bear by Raph when they were little. So she searched for that bear in his old bedroom during her visit with Karai, because she had a hunch that the toy's presence would be enough to convince Raph to come back home.

She returned to the living room and sat on the couch with Karai, Casey, and Shadow. The teenage girl was staring nervously at Chompy, who sat on the floor and stared back at her, his tail wagging and his tongue sticking out.

"Wh-Why is he...is he looking at me like that?" Shadow stuttered.

"He wants you to pet him," Karai told her. "Go ahead. He won't bite."

Shadow gulped and got off the couch, slowly walking toward the giant turtle. His tail wagged faster as she got closer. Her shaky hand reached for his nose...

Chompy opened his mouth and licked her hand. Though he was just trying to be friendly, the movement frightened Shadow and she retreated back to the couch, sitting in between Casey and April with her knees pressed to her chest. Chompy looked at her sadly and whimpered, and Karai walked over to him and gently patted his head.

"It's not you, Chompy," she told him.

"You're doing good, sweetie," April wrapped an arm around Shadow.

"Yeah, one step at a time," Casey patted her shoulder with a smirk.

Chompy suddenly looked in the direction of the entrance to the lair and growled threateningly.

"What's wrong, boy?" Karai followed his gaze, and her eyes widened immediately and she put a hand to her mouth.

April, Casey, and Shadow turned around on the couch to see who or what it was. While April and Casey were absolutely shocked, Shadow was confused and didn't know how to react.

"Mom, who's this?"

* * *

"Even the grave couldn't prevent Mikey from looking after us," Raph said as he drank tea with Splinter in the dojo.

"Indeed," Splinter smiled to himself. "His love for us is stronger even than death. As his father, I couldn't be more proud." He closed his eyes and sighed, his ears flattening again. "I only wish that I had told him that more often when he was alive."

"Yeah, well," Raph put his tea cup down and looked at the photo of his baby brother at the altar, "we _both_ have regrets. My last words to Mikey before he died weren't exactly...nice. And for a long time, the guilt was killing me. I mean, _literally_ killing me. If weren't for Mikey...man, I don't know."

"Did your brother ever mention about my...suicide attempts?" Splinter looked away shamefully.

"He did," Raph softly told him. "Sensei, please...I can't bear the thought of you killing yourself. It won't give you peace. Believe me, I know." He unwrapped his dirty bandages from his right arm and revealed the scars to Splinter.

Splinter's brown eyes widened and he gently touched Raph's scarred skin. "Oh, my son..." he said barely below a whisper.

"It wasn't your fault, Father," Raph smiled sadly at him. "But please, don't hurt yourself, too."

"Do not worry, Raphael. I no longer have the desire to take my own life. You have Miwa to thank for that."

"Yeah," Raph looked down at the floor in shame. "She's been a better kid to you than I ever was. I mean, she stuck by you for thirty years. Now that's what I call devotion."

"I understand why you left, Raphael," Splinter put his hand over Raph's. "Why _all_ of you left."

"Mikey wanted us to be together again," Raph covered Splinter's hand with his other one. "As a family." He then looked up at Splinter and gave him a small smile. "And I'm going to try to make that happen."

"Don't waste your time."

Raph's heart jumped.

 _It can't be...!_

Raph and Splinter turned to the direction of the voice. Standing at the dojo entrance was Leonardo himself. He was dressed in black and had a black snake tattoo on his plastron. He glared at them with cold blue eyes that sent shivers down Raph's spine.

 _Oh, my god. Leo...?_

 **Oh, boy. Leo came back...Things might get ugly...**


	10. The Burden Of The Leader

**So many favs, alerts and reviews this week! I'm so flattered! Thank you everyone!**

 **Anyway, on with the story...**

"Leo…?"

"Leonardo?"

Said Turtle only continued to glare at the two. His eyes and expression softened, though, once he saw the altar behind them. Without saying a word, he reached down to pick up a large black bag that lay at his feet and walked pass them.

"Leo, what...?" Raph tried to get Leo's attention as he passed by, but his older brother paid no heed to him.

Leo knelt in front of the altar and stared fondly at Mikey's photo. He kissed his fingertips and pressed them against the glass. "Hi, Mikey," he softly said. "I've brought you something."

Reaching inside the bag, he pulled out what appeared to be a massively deformed skull, but Raph and Splinter immediately recognized it to be the late Super Shredder's mask (or at least, they _assumed_ that it was a mask). He delicately placed it right next to the porcelain bowl, the bottom of which lay the shredded remains of Mikey's mask. Leo noticed the blood stains and a scowl appeared on his face. He took a piece out of the bowl and turned to face Splinter, holding it out for him to see.

"How dare you?" he hissed. "This still has Mikey's blood on it. You couldn't have at least _washed_ it for him? And you didn't even attempt to sew it back together. What would he say?"

The already disheartened rat opened his mouth to speak but Raph did it for him.

"Take it easy, Leo," he said with a frown. "Mikey doesn't care about that at all. I mean, come on! He rarely even washed that thing _himself_ when he was alive."

Leo narrowed his eyes at Raph. "I wasn't talking to _you_ , Raph," he said.

"Yeah, good to see you, too, _bro_ ," Raph snapped.

"Leonardo," Splinter focused his eyes on the Shredder's mask. " _You_ killed the Shredder?"

"Yeah," Leo glanced back at the white face in disgust and contempt. "Right after Mikey's funeral. I gave that monster the slow and agonizing death that he deserved." He looked back at Splinter and smirked. "I know what you're going to say: 'I am proud of you, Leonardo.' Right? 'Cause you would _always_ say that to me." His smirk slowly turned into a frown. "Well, I didn't do it for you. I did it for Mikey."

"My son," Splinter looked at Leo with sad eyes, "It is never wise to go down the path of vengeance." He gestured toward the mask. "Look what happened to Oroku Saki."

"Save your words of wisdom," Leo spat. "I'm _not_ Oroku Saki. I'll _never_ become like him."

Raph raised an invisible eyebrow at him. "You sure about that, Leo?"

Leo quickly gave Raph a hateful stare. "You're joking, right? Saki was _evil_. But I'm not. What, you think I am?"

"No, no I don't. But, I think..."

"Raphael," Splinter placed his hand on Raph's shoulder. "Please step outside. I wish to speak with your brother alone."

Raph felt uneasy about this and glanced at Leo. "You sure about that, Sensei?"

"Yes. Please."

Hesitantly, Raph stood back up and proceeded to the doors, but he stopped for a moment to give Leo a glare. A glare that warned the other Turtle not to try anything funny or else things would get ugly. Leo only glared back, not the least bit intimated. Raph left the room, leaving the rat and his former student alone together.

"Leonardo," Splinter quietly said, "I cannot begin to tell you how happy I am to see you again."

His son only snorted and looked away, his arms crossed. "Don't get the wrong idea. I didn't come to see you because I _wanted_ to. I only came to pay tribute to Mikey." He looked back at his father with hateful, cold eyes. "Just the sight of you _sickens_ me," he whispered with utter hate in his voice.

Splinter felt those words stab him in the heart and his ears sank back. But his loving gaze did not even falter. "That is understandable. And you have every reason to despise me so. Still, I am glad you came home, even if it wasn't for me. And I am grateful to you for protecting our family from the Shredder."

Leo responded with a "hmmph" and glanced back at the altar sadly. "I couldn't protect _everyone_ ," he softly said. "The least I can do for him is to protect this city from all criminals."

"Yes," Splinter sadly said. "Miwa told me."

"Oh, she did, huh?" Leo got up and stood over him menacingly. "So what now? You're gonna try to convince me to stop? Lecture me on how it's wrong to kill people?"

Splinter only shook his head. "No."

This reaction surprised Leo and he took a step back. "Wh-what?"

The elderly rat gave him a sad smile. "You are no longer a child," he said softly. "You know what is right and wrong. You make your own decisions, choose your own path. Do I approve of what you are doing? No, of course not. And I do not believe that you are evil, Leonardo. You are merely angry and lost. But I know that you will find your way again. You are my son, after all."

For a moment, Leo said nothing and continued to stare at Splinter with wide blue eyes. Then he narrowed them.

"Your son?" his chuckled bitterly then pointed at Mikey's picture. "Well, what about Mikey? Wasn't he your son, too?"

"Leonardo..."

"Let me ask you something. If it had me that Shredder had kidnapped instead of Mikey, would you _still_ have chosen to save Miwa?"

Splinter lowered his eyes. "I wouldn't know the answer to that, Leonardo."

"Don't give me that!" Leo said angrily. "You and I both know that you'd sacrifice me because I'm not really your son! Not me, not Mikey, not Donnie, not Raph! Now don't get me wrong. I would've gladly given my life for Miwa, and I'm fully aware that Mikey begged you to pick him. But compared to Mikey, _I_ was expendable. I was just the leader." He bowed his head and closed his eyes tightly. "Mikey was...the _heart_ of this family. We needed him the most, and you knew it."

He opened his eyes and they glistened with tears. "Yet you chose him," he said in a broken voice. "And you didn't even watch. But _I_ did. I watched every _second_ of it."

Splinter remained silent, but his own eyes watered and he reached for Leo's trembling hand.

But Leo jerked it away, rejecting his father's gesture of love. "Don't touch me," he growled. "You wanted so badly to reunite with your daughter. Well, congratulations, you have her back now. So what do you need _us_ for, right?" He then picked up his black bag and headed for the door.

"Wait," Splinter choked. "My son, please..."

Too late. He was gone.

* * *

"I hope that Leo and Splinter make amends in there," April said as she sat the kitchen table with the others.

Then they saw Leo stomp into the living room, an angry expression on his face.

April sighed and rubbed her temples. "I spoke too soon."

Leo stopped in his tracks when he spotted their old pinball machine. Grinning to himself, he walked over to the game and blew the dust off. Though he pushed the button to activate it, nothing turned on.

He heard heavy footsteps approach him. "You know, I never did beat that high score of yours."

Leo turned to face Raph and smiled at him. "Never expected you to."

His hotheaded brother chuckled and playfully punched him on the arm. "Hey! I could still beat it! But the stupid thing doesn't work anymore."

"Sure, Raph," Leo laughed. "You just keep telling yourself that."

"Leo?" April got out of her chair and approached the two. She smiled warmly at the former leader. "It's really good to see you again." She wrapped her arms around him and rested her cheek on his shoulder. She felt him hug her back and stroke her red hair.

"It's good to see you, too, sis," she heard him say gently.

She pulled out of the hug and gently tugged at his arm. "Come sit with us. I want you to meet someone."

He allowed her to drag him to the kitchen table and sat next to Miwa, who smiled at him sweetly and offered him some tea.

"Hey, Leo," Casey sat directly across from the Turtle. "Loving the new look, man. Especially the tattoo."

Leo smirked and traced the snake with his finger. "Thanks. Drew it myself."

"Leo," April sat in the chair next Shadow and pulled her close. "This is my daughter, Shadow. _Our_ daughter." She glanced lovingly at Casey, who smiled at her.

Leo looked genuinely surprised. "Oh. So you and Casey got married? Well, what did Donnie have to say about that?"

April looked down at the table crestfallen. "Donnie didn't say anything, because he was never there. He abandoned us only a few days after...the funeral. We hadn't seen him since. I saw him yesterday, though. He now works for Morph Enterprises as a robotics engineer."

"Why isn't he here, then? Too busy?"

"He says he is. But really it's because he doesn't care at all."

"Hmmm," Leo looked down at his tea cup. "So he's cooped himself up in his lab again. Doesn't surprise me." He looked back up at Shadow and held his hand out for her to shake. "Shadow, was it? Leonardo."

Shadow bit her lower lip and slowly reached a trembling hand to grab his. Before she could touch him, though, he grabbed her hand first and firmly shook it, sending shivers down her spine and causing her to flinch. As soon as he let go, she jerked her hand away and scooted closer to her mother for comfort, whimpering.

"Is she all right?" Leo looked at her in concern.

"Yeah, she just has this phobia of mutants," April said as she soothingly rubbed her daughter's back.

"Why?"

"She just has it, okay?" Raph gruffly said. "Don't bug her about it."

"Speaking of 'bug' and phobias," Casey smiled slyly at him. "I forgot to ask: how'd you manage to survive in nature with all of the creepy-crawlies?" He chuckled while April looked at her husband disapprovingly.

"Please, Jones," Raph rolled his eye. "I've gotten over that phobia years ago." As soon as he said that, a cockroach scurried across the kitchen floor. Raph heard it approaching and swiftly scooped in up. Then, right in front of everyone, he opened his mouth and _ate it_!

As he chewed crunchily, he noticed the disgusted and shocked looks on everyone else's faces. "Sorry," he shrugged. "Force of habit."

* * *

"Aw come on, dude," Casey whined as Leo headed for the exit. "Can't you stay a bit longer? We haven't seen you in thirty years, you know."

"Sorry, Casey," Leo smiled sadly at his human friend. "Got a city to protect." He then turned to April and embraced her one more time. "Take care of yourself, April."

The former kunoichi rested her cheek on Leo's shoulder and sighed. "You, too, Leo," she said softly.

Still hugging April, Leo looked up at Shadow and gave her a quick nod. "It was nice to meet you, Shadow."

"Y-yeah," the teen nervously said as she rubbed her arm awkwardly.

"Leo," Karai walked over to him and gently put a hand on his shoulder. She smiled warmly at him. "Thanks for coming. It meant a lot to me and Father."

Leo didn't smile back, but he nodded at her. He reached down to pick up his bag.

"Leonardo."

Leo turned his head to find Splinter walking into the living room, holding what appeared to be a booklet wrapped in plastic.

"Please, wait," he said. "I have something for you."

Leo turned his shell to him and picked up his bag, slinging the strap over his shoulder. "I don't want anything from _you_ ," he said in a low, cold voice.

"You misunderstand," Splinter gently urged. "It is not from me. It is from Michelangelo."

At this, Leo turned his head. Splinter held the booklet out to him, his withered old hands shaking. The Turtle finally took it from him and looked at the cover. His eyes widened when he saw the familiar drawing of himself wearing a space helmet and standing on top of a blue-green planet.

It was the comic that Mikey made for him after the Parasitica incident.

"Michelangelo worked so hard on that comic book for you," Splinter said while smiling. "He would've wanted you to have it."

Leo let out a shaky sigh and could feel the tears coming. He remembered the time Mikey read to him when he was in that dreadful coma. He could still hear his baby brother's warm, comforting voice. Though he did not look up at his father, he spoke very quietly, "Thank you."

He then turned to Raph, who stood at the exit with his arms crossed and a serious expression on his face. "Raph, I..."

"I'll go outside with you," Raph interrupted. "We need to talk."

* * *

"You remember when we used to have water hose fights here on the rooftops?" Raph chuckled as he looked at the forest of skyscrapers with Leo.

"I do," Leo smiled fondly at the memory. "Those were good times."

"Yeah, there were," Raph mumbled, his eye glistening.

Complete silence followed, save for the cars honking below them.

"You know, you shouldn't be so hard on Master Splinter," Raph softly said.

"How could you even _forgive_ him?" Leo asked barely below a whisper.

Raph looked down at the streets somberly. "You know, for I while, I couldn't," he said softly. "I couldn't even forgive _myself_ for failing to save Mikey. But then I realized that moping and beating myself up over it wouldn't have made things better. In fact, things got worse ever since we split up. I needed to stop being so selfish and put my family before myself."

"You really think we can be a family again?" Leo asked while glancing at Raph.

His one-eyed brother glanced back at him and nodded. "I do."

"Don't be stupid," Leo snapped.

"How is that stupid, Leo?" Raph asked angrily.

"Our family's broken, and it always will be. It can't work without Mikey. You know that."

"Mikey is _still_ here with us, bro."

"Oh, god," Leo rolled his eyes. "Here we go."

"No, really, he is! I _saw_ him, myself. Well, in a vision. He said that it was time for us to be together again. That includes _you_."

Leo didn't seemed too convinced and looked at him skeptically. "Is that so?"

"Yeah," Raph turned to completely face him and crossed his arms. "He also told me about your plan to kill yourself."

Leo's face instantly became pale. "What?"

Raph placed his hands on his brother's shoulders, looking at him in the eye. "Bro, please, don't ever go there," he said softly. "I already lost one brother. I don't plan on losing another. You say it's too late to fix things, but it's not. I know you did horrible things, but that doesn't mean that you're irredeemable. You can still turn back while there's still time."

Leo lowered his eyes and gently pushed Raph's hands away. "Raph, please stop," he whispered.

"No, Leo. I _won't_ stop. I'm _not_ going to give up on you. I promised Mikey that I would bring you back, and that's just what I'm going to do, no matter what."

Leo said nothing and continued to look at the concrete floor.

Raph leaned in close to his brother's face, his voice slightly cracked as he spoke. "I love you, bro. And I can't bear the thought of losing you or Donnie. Please come home. Please, Leo?"

The vigilante finally lifted his eyes to Raph. They were once again cold and emotionless. "I made a vow to protect this city," he had a very serious tone in his voice, "and I'm never going to stop. And if that means that I have to take some scumbag's life, then so be it."

"Leo, wait..." Raph tried to reason with Leo but was interrupted.

"Mikey died because we were too weak. We could've killed the Shredder many times before but we hesitated. Well, I'm never going to hesitate again." He took a step back and pointed to his snake tattoo. " _This_ is who I am now, Raph, whether you like it or not."

Leo's eyes and voice softened. "I know I'm a danger to you and everyone else. And pretty soon you won't have to worry about me anymore. Just...until then, for your own sake, stay away from me."

Leo started to walk away, but he stopped for a moment to look at Raph. His face seemed apologetic, his blue eyes full of sorrow and regret. Raph's heart pained as he came to the realization that Leo truly believed that there was no way out for him. That he was trapped. That he did not deserve the light that was being offered to him, and he was condemned to dwell in the darkness forever.

"Goodbye, Raphael."

And with that, Leo jumped off the rooftop onto the next. Raph watched sadly as his brother disappeared out of sight, them went back to looking at the city lights. He let out a heavy sigh and closed his eye.

The former Leader in Blue had always refused to share his burdens with his brothers, even if the load was unbearable. Even now, he was protecting his family by driving them away. Typical Leo.

 _What am I gonna do now, Mikey?_

 **Indeed, what will Raph do now...?**

 **You thought Leo was gonna attack Splinter, didn't ya?**

 **I added a reference to one of my own stories, in case any of you haven't noticed yet. :)**


	11. Return Of The Ninja Turtle

"This is April Jones signing off."

A figure dressed in a trench coat and wearing a fedora hat approached the reporter as she wrapped things up with Vernon. He also wore sunglasses and his lower face was covered with a scarf. "I can't believe you're now a reporter, April," the stranger said. "Did you go to school for that?"

"As of matter of fact, I did," she turned and smiled at him. "Earned a bachelor's degree in journalism."

"Hey, April," Vernon playfully nudged her, "you gonna introduce me to your mysterious friend or what?"

"Vernon, this is my good friend, Raphael. Raph, this our cameraman, Vernon Fenwick."

"Nice to meet you," Raph reached a gloved hand out to Vernon, who was slightly taken back by the three fingers. The Turtle noticed his reaction and quickly thought of an explanation. "Heh, yeah, I know. Three fingers. I, uh, lost my two other ones in the war. On both hands." He held his hands up for Vernon to see.

"Oh, man," Vernon winced and politely shook Raph's hand. "Sorry to hear that. Appreciate your service in the army."

"April, I'm gonna explore the rest of the city," Raph turned to the reporter. "See how much has changed since I was gone."

April nodded. "All right, Raph. Please be careful." She tugged at his arm and pulled him closer, whispering in his ear. "And don't let anyone see you without your disguise."

"I know that," Raph whispered back with a smirk before walking away.

"And try to stay out of trouble!" she called after him. She heard him grumble, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever," and shook her head.

"Is your friend an albino or something?" Vernon asked April once Raph was gone. "I mean, it's summer and yet he's dressed like it's the coldest day of the year."

"Well, he's got some ugly scars that he doesn't want anybody else to see," April said with a bit of sadness in her voice, because that part was true.

"Oh, you mean from the war?"

"...Yeah, from the war."

* * *

The disguised Turtle accidentally bumped into a pedestrian, who was obviously already having issues of his own.

"Hey, watch it, bud!" the man growled. "You lookin' for trouble?"

"Sorry," Raph mumured as he walked away.

 _Well, the humans are still as rude and crabby as ever. I miss the swampy already. Hey, I wonder if...?_

Raph decided to go to Murakami's for old time's sake. Even though it had been thirty years, he held onto the hope that the kind elderly man was still alive and running the noodle shop. He did miss those delicious pizza gyoza.

Unfortunately, when he got there, he found that in its place was a Mexican restaurant. He felt his heart sink as he saw a Hispanic cook step outside with a garbage bag in his hand. "Um, excuse me?" he called out to the man and approached him. "Hi. You know what happened to the previous owner of this building, Mr. Murakami?"

"Murakami?" the cook raised an eyebrow. "You mean, the blind Japanese chef?"

"Yeah, he's a good friend of mine."

"Oh," the cook looked at him sympathetically. "You don't know?"

"Know what? I've been gone for thirty years. Where is he?"

"Murakami died about nine years ago. From a stroke."

Raph closed his eye behind his sunglasses and let out a heavy sigh. Another old friend gone. "I see," he said quietly then started to walk away. "Well, thanks for your time, man."

"Wait," the cook gestured at the front entrance of the restaurant. "Wanna come inside to eat? It's on me."

"Oh, no, no. That's okay, you don't have to..."

"Nah, it's fine. I insist. I can tell you're having a rough day."

 _Huh. Glad to see that there are still some good and decent people in New York._ "Wow, thanks, man."

"Think nothing of it," the cook grinned. "The name's Ronny, by the way."

The Turtle shook hands with him. "Raphael, but you can call me 'Raph."

"Raphael, huh? You Italian?"

"Heh, no, but I sure do like pizza. A lot."

"Well, if it's pizza you want, then pizza you will get."

* * *

"Man! This Mexican Pizza's the _bomb_!" Raph exclaimed as he munched on another slice. The pizza was composed of corn tortillas topped with beans, beef, roma tomatoes, green onions, and cheese. He looked up at the cook who sat across from him at the table. "Ronny, my man, you rock."

Ronny chuckled. "Think so, huh? Well, thanks. So, you're one of those mutants?"

Raph stopped eating for a moment and quickly pulled the scarf over his mouth. "Uh, no, what's make you think I am?"

"Come on, Raph. It's kinda obvious. The green scaly skin, the three fingers on each hand."

"Oh! The fingers! Lost them in the war. And my skin? Well, it's actually a symptom of...a rare disease that I caught...in Africa?"

Ronny snorted. "Nice try. Look, it's okay if you're a mutant. Your secret's safe with me."

Raph removed his scarf and sunglasses and smiled gratefully at the human.

"So you said you've been gone for thirty years?" Ronny asked Raph, who nodded in response as he continued to eat. "That's an awful long time to be gone. Why did you decide to come back, if you don't mind me asking?"

Raph set his plate aside as he finished the last piece. "I left New York after my youngest brother, Mikey, died. For a long time, I blamed myself for his death, and I just couldn't stay here any longer because of the memories. I mean, we grew up and did everything together in this city. I wanted to get away from it all, so I moved to North Hampton and never looked back."

"I see," Ronny rubbed his chin. "So what changed your mind?"

"Well, an old friend came by to see me, and he informed me that my father was dying. At first, I refused to come back, but then I realized that I was being selfish and cowardly. My family needs me, after all. Things fell apart after Mikey's funeral, and instead of being there for my dad and brothers, I completely abandoned them. I need to make things right again." He sighed discouragingly. "It won't be easy, though. My brothers just won't let go of their pain and anger, especially my eldest. He instead takes it out on other people."

Ronny nodded and a somber expression was on his face. "It is hard to let it go. I know what it is like to lose a loved one. The pain will lessen over the years, but the scars will always remain. I lost my daughter not even a year after she was born, and I still miss her every day."

"Oh, I'm so sorry. How old would she be today?"

"Twenty-five."

"Wow. Well, did you ever have any more kids?"

"No. My wife left me shortly after my daughter's death, and I never re-married. I could've stopped her from leaving, you know. But I didn't. It's far too late for _my_ family..." He looked up at Raph and smiled warmly at him. "...but not for _yours_. Don't give up now."

Raph smiled back and was about to say something when they heard a gunshot and people screaming in horror. They turned to find two armed robbers, a man and a woman, wearing ski masks standing at the entrance.

"Nobody move!" the man yelled. "This is a robbery!"

"Get down on the floor!" the woman screamed.

Everyone in the restaurant but Raph and Ronny obeyed. The Turtle quickly put his sunglasses and scarf back on before the man marched right over to them, pointing his gun and gritting his teeth. "Didn't you hear us?" he growled. "On the floor!"

"I heard you the first time," Ronny calmly said. "But I prefer to sit at my table, thank you very much."

"Yeah, same here," Raph gruffly said.

"Now don't get cute, you two," the robber got even more aggravated. "Would you rather drop to the floor with a bullet in your head?" He aimed the gun at Ronny's head...

In a flash, a sai pierced right through the gun, causing the man to let go of his weapon in shock. Raph smirked behind his scarf. _Thanks, April._ With a flick of his sai, the gun flung across the room and landed on the floor.

The woman gaped at the Turtle before shooting at him. Raph dodged the bullets, being careful not to jump in the way of the customers and endanger their lives. Once he got close enough, he knocked the gun out of her hand and did a low roundhouse kick to sweep her off her feet. She landed on her back and let out a groan.

"You're lucky that I don't hit girls," Raph sneered down at her, but then noticed that his hat, sunglasses, and scarf were missing and his face had been revealed to everyone in the restaurant. "Oops."

"Raph, look out!"

Upon hearing Ronny call out to him, Raph turned in time to see the male robber charge at him with a knife. He barely dodged the blade as it ripped through his trench coat, revealing his plastron. Seeing that the disguise was now useless, Raph tore it off and pulled out his twin sai. "All right," he growled. " _Now_ I'm mad."

The robber's eye grew wide with fear. "Aw, shoot. I know you!"

Raph looked at the man confused. "You do?"

"You're the Serpent!"

"Who?"

"Holy crap, it _is_ him!" the woman scooted away fearfully. "Mitch, let's get outta here!"

Mitch ran past Raph and out the front door, his female friend following close behind. The stunned customers whispered to each other as they all stared at the mutant Turtle, some pulling out their phones and making calls. "Call the police," Raph heard a lady say quietly.

 _Well, I think that's my cue to bail._

"Psst." Raph turned to find Ronny pointed to the kitchen. "This way," the cook whispered to him.

* * *

"You mean, you live in the sewers?" Ronny asked as they were now standing over a manhole about three blocks away from the restaurant. " _Now_ I've seen everything."

Raph chuckled. "Ronny, listen, thanks for everything. I mean it. Thanks."

"You know," Ronny placed on hand on Raph's shoulder, "since you're such a big fan of my cooking, you can come by the restaurant at any time after closing. Just shoot me a text and I'll be there to let you in." He pulled a notepad and pen from out of the pocket of his apron and wrote down his number. He tore out the page and handed it to Raph. "Remember, you're always welcome."

Raph took the paper and smiled at the kind Hispanic cook. "Looks like I've made a new friend."

Ronny smiled back and patted Raph's shell. "Looks like it, don't it?"

The Turtle removed the lid to the manhole and climbed inside. Ronny waved down at him before moving the lid back over the hole.

* * *

 _Witnesses claim that the Serpent was seen at the Paraiso restaurant at around 5:40 pm. Two masked criminals attempted to rob the restaurant at gunpoint when a mutant Turtle with daggers attacked and drove them off._

"Sai," Raph grumbled as he watched the news on the couch with Chompy lying at his feet. "They're not daggers."

 _"Well, he fitted the description of the Serpent,"_ an African American woman spoke to the reporter, _"but he didn't kill those two guys like he normally would. He just let 'em go. So maybe it wasn't the Serpent. Could be his twin brother or something?"_

"I really hope you're wrong, lady," he said quietly. He heard his T-phone ring and pushed the answer button before putting it to his ear. "Hello?"

 _Raph, are you okay?_

"Yeah, I'm fine, April. I take it that you just saw the news?"

 _I told you to stay out of trouble and to not let anyone see you without your disguise!_

"All right, calm down, April."

 _How can I calm down?! Raph, they're already associating you with the Serpent! You could go to jail!_

"Yeah, well, they'll have to catch me first. And who is this Serpent guy, by the way?"

Silence.

"April, who is he?"

Still no response.

"Leo's the Serpent, isn't he?"

 _...Yes, Raph. He is._

Raph rubbed his temples and let out a heavy sigh. "I was afraid of that."

 _Raph, listen, we'll figure this out, okay? But for now, stay in the lair._

"April, I can't..."

 _Please, Raph. I just got you back. I don't want to lose you again._

"...Fine."

 _Thanks. We'll discuss this tomorrow. Goodnight, Raph._

"Yeah, goodnight. Oh, and April? Thanks for holding onto my sai all these years."

 _No problem._

He hung up and leaned back in the couch. He picked up the remote and changed the channel, hoping that there was something better to watch on T.V.

 _...ten year old girl had been brutally raped and murdered by the man before he cut her up and placed her body parts in separate bags..._

Click.

 _...I-I saw him place the gun at his head and then pull the trigger. He was...he was actually laughing as pieces of Dad's brain..._

Click.

 _What do you think of the Serpent, Chris?_

 _Well, Chuck, I've got two words for you: psychopathic nutcase._

Click.

 _I'm afraid to let my kid walk to school on his own because of that Serpent guy._

 _But doesn't he protect people like us from criminals?_ _Shouldn't you instead feel_ safer _around him?_

 _Well, I mean, sure, he protects us from criminals. But who's going to protect us from_ him _?_

Click.

 _When I was a kid, I was rescued from a burning building by this group of Ninja Turtles._

Raph's eye widened.

 _Ever since then, I was a big fan of theirs. I even made myself a ninja mask and wore it to school every day. Sure, yeah, the other kids teased me for it, but that never bothered me, 'cause I admired the Turtles so much. We need heroes like them today. Not like that maniac the Serpent._ _Ninja Turtles, if you're watching this, please hear me out: we need you now more than ever. I_ _still believe_ _in you. Be the heroes that I know you are._

 _Thank you, Zach. Coming up, the Governor of California caught kissing a-_

Raph turned the T.V. off and looked up at the ceiling in deep thought.

 _So there are people out there who know that we exist and still believe in us. Amazing. And that Zach guy is right: the city, no, the_ world _needs us back_. _But Leo's gone cuckoo and Donnie doesn't really give a crap._

* * *

"So, you think I should do it?" Raph was now in his little brother's bedroom and sitting on the bed next to Mikey. The freckled turtle looked up from his comic book at Raph.

"Yeah, dude," Mikey said. "The people in this city need a hero, and we're heroes, aren't we?"

"Nah," Raph said with a sad smile. " _You_ were the hero, Mikey. I'm just an old coward."

"You're not a coward, Raph," Mikey rolled his eyes. "But you _are_ old. Sorry, but it's true."

"Gee, thanks," Raph mumbled but was smiling to himself.

"Think about it, bro. If you go out there and show Leo how it's really done, then he'll remember what it means to be a _real_ hero. He's been in the dark for too long, Raph. It's time to show him the light."

* * *

Raph opened his eye and was back in the dojo, kneeling in front of Mikey's altar. On the floor next to him was the tattered red robe that he wore in the woods of North Hampton. He reached down to brush his fingers over the cloth. In this robe, he was the Green Man, the feared king of the forest. But that person was long gone.

He was now Raphael the Ninja Turtle.

With a pair of scissors, he cut a new ninja mask with only one eye hole out of his old robe. He removed his eyepatch and put the mask over his face, tying a knot behind his head and then tightening it.

Placing the sai back into his belt, Raph gave Chompy a quick pat on the head before heading into the tunnels.

 _Sorry, April, but I can't continue to hide in the sewers any longer. The city needs a Ninja Turtle._

 **Evil beware! One of the Ninja Turtles is back in town! What will be in store for Raph...?**

 **So Ronny is going to be the new Murakami. :)**

 **Also, there's another character from the 1987 TV series in this chapter. Can you guess who it is?**


	12. Evil Has A New Face

**So if you guessed that the character in the last chapter was Zach, then you are correct! :D**

"Carl, when are you gonna get here already?"

 _On my way now, babe._

"Ugh! That's exactly what you said _thirty_ minutes ago! Know what? Forget it. I'm gonna take the bus."

A disgruntled young woman named Stacy hung up on her boyfriend and shoved her phone into her coat pocket. Her shift had ended about an hour ago, and she was done waiting for her ride. She walked out of the restaurant and proceeded to the nearest bus stop. Once she arrived, she sat on the bench and waited, but unbeknownest to her, a group of thugs were staring at her in the alley behind her with predatory eyes. They casually walked over to the bench and surrounded her.

"Hey, sweet cheeks," one man growled lustfully.

"You busy tonight?" another man snickered.

Stacy felt fear in her heart but did her best to hide it. "Buzz off, creeps," she snapped.

"Hey, come on, don't be that way," one grabbed her by the arm and tried to pull her up. "Let's have some fun."

"Let go of me!" Stacy tried to jerk her arm away, but then another man grabbed her other arm.

"Ooh, feisty," he chuckled darkly. "I like that."

Though she resisted and screamed, they dragged her into the alley while laughing cruelly. Two of them pinned her to the brick wall while a third pulled out a pocket knife.

"Go ahead and scream, baby," the fourth guy said. "We like that."

" _You're_ the ones who should be screaming."

A dark figure jumped down from the rooftoop and landed in the alley, a piercing white eye glaring at them and twin sai drawn out.

"Dude, what is this?" "I dunno." "Guy's lookin' for trouble." "Let's jump 'im!"

They all charged at the stranger, but he dodged every kick and punch with ease and grace and struck back with a speed that Stacy had never seen before. Within under a minute, the creeps had been knocked out, lying unconscious on the ground. Her savior glanced back her briefly. "Call the police," he instructed before he took what looked like an egg from out his belt and threw it to the ground. The second the object hit the ground, the stranger disappeared in a puff of purple smoke.

The woman continued to stare at the spot he was standing on seconds ago. _Who was that guy?_

* * *

"Just stick close to me, rookie," Sgt. Morris told his partner as they arrived at the convenience store. "And remember: no heroics. By the book."

"Got it," officer Finn said as he stepped out of the patrol car and rushed into the building with Morris at his side. The elder cop pushed the door open and drew his gun out.

"Police!" Morris shouted.

The clerk was standing behind his desk and drinking out of a soda can, seemingly calm, which was pretty strange.

Morris lowered his gun and scratched his head in confusion. "Um, we received a distress call that robbers were invading your store?"

"Yeah," the clerk responded with a thick Indian accent. "But somebody beat you to it." He pointed to the corner where two men in ski masks sat, tied up together and unconscious.

"What the...?" Finn couldn't believe his eyes. "Does this kind of stuff happen often?"

"Sir, who did this?" Morris asked the clerk. The employee simply handed him a note, which the officer took and scanned over. In the center was a green turtle shell symbol, and at the bottom right read the words, " **NINJA TURTLE** ".

* * *

April yawned as she went downstairs for breakfast, and sitting in the living room in front of the T.V. was her husband, staring at the screen with wide eyes and resting his chin on his fist.

"Morning, honey," she softly said, but frowned when he didn't turn his eyes away from the program he was watching. She cleared her throat in annoyance.

"Huh?" Casey finally looked at her. "Oh, sorry, honey. Um, you should probably see this."

Confused and curious, April sat next to her husband on the couch. On the screen was a picture of the note that Sgt. Morris received from the clerk. April's blue eyes widened as she recognized the symbol and signature.

"Oh, Raph," she sighed and rubbed her temples.

* * *

 _"I thought for sure that I was going to die,"_ an elderly woman spoke into the microphone. _"But then this mutant Turtle wearing a red mask came to my rescue. He called himself the 'Ninja Turtle'."_

...

 _"People say they're daggers,"_ a young man wearing glasses scoffed. _"But they're_ clearly _sai, traditional ninja weapons. Why can't they get it right?"_

...

 _"It couldn't have been the Serpent,"_ the chubby owner of a comic store said. _"'Cause if it was, there'd be a dead guy on my floor. I'm telling you, this guy is more like Batman!"_

 _"No, I'd say more like the Hulk,"_ a skinnier geek wearing a Captain America shirt joined in.

 _"The Hulk?"_ the owner looked at his friend with a raised eyebrow.

 _"Duh! 'Cause he's green!"_

 _"But the Hulk isn't skilled in ninjustsu."_

 _"Well, neither is Batman!"_

 _"Uh, yeah, he is, actually."_

 _"No way!"_

 _"Yeah way!"_

 _"No way!"_

 _"Yeah way!"_

...

 _"He saved my son's life,"_ a blond woman wiped her tears away with a tissue. _"I'm truly grateful to him."_

Her six year old boy smiled and waved at the camera. _"Thank you, Mr. Turtle!"_

...

 _"I'm just glad that we didn't have to get any more body bags,"_ Sgt. Morris chuckled. _"Looks like we'll be filling up the prison instead of the morgue from now on."_

...

 _"I guess the Ninja Turtles heard my message,"_ Zach smiled widely at the camera. _"It's good to have you back, guys."_

* * *

Leo turned the T.V. off in his apartment room and took a sip of his coffee.

"You really think you'll make a difference in this city, Raph?" he quietly said. "By playing the good cop? They'll chew you up and spit you right out."

* * *

Malcolm Sefton quietly opened the door to the lab and peeked in. "Excuse me, Donatello?"

Said Turtle was facing his computer and typing. "Yes, Mr. Sefton?"

"I don't mean to interrupt, but have you seen the news?"

"Yes, I have."

"You wouldn't happen to know him, would you? I mean, since this guy is also a mutant Turtle..."

"He's my brother."

Sefton's jaw dropped. "Is that right? You didn't tell me you had brothers!"

"I didn't include it in my resume because it's irrelevant."

"...Oh. Right." Stefton awkwardly cleared his throat. "Well, then, I'll, uh, leave you to your work."

* * *

Shadow Jones walked across the school yard, having survived the immensely boring history class and eager to get back home. Unfortunately, Peter Vander and his friends once again decided to torment the teenage girl and followed her. She could sense them behind her and rolled her eyes, sighing exasperatedly. "Go away, Peter!" she huffed.

"Or what?" Peter taunted.

"Or she'll go home crying to her momma," Tim chuckled.

"Shut up," Shadow growled. She could feel her blood boiling.

"Ooh, I'm really scared," Kev mocked. "April Jones might report us to death."

"Yo, Jones," Peter blocked Shadow's path and was about nose to nose with her. He glared at her and cracked his knuckles. "You really did a number on Matty."

"He deserved it," Shadow mumbled as she glared back.

"You know that old saying, 'an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth'?"

"Didn't your momma ever teach you not to hit girls...Petey boy?" she smirked at the last part, knowing full well how much he hated that nickname.

Peter snarled at her, "You're no girl. You're a b**ch."

That word again.

 _All right, that's it._

Shadow couldn't hold back anymore. She pounced on the boy and pinned him to the ground. Raising her fists, she proceeded to beat the living snot out of him. Peter sobbed as she continued to hit him in the face, and he heard a sickening crack the moment she punched him in the nose.

"Oh, snap," Kev whispered to Tim. "She broke his nose."

"Help me!" Peter cried desperately.

"Well, w-what do you want us to do?" Tim nervously asked.

" _Hit her_!"

"But we can't hit girls, man," Kev gulped.

All of a sudden, a green hand grabbed a hold of Shadow's fist, preventing her from delivering any more punches. She turned her head quickly and was shocked to find Raphael looking down at her disapprovingly.

"That's enough, Shadow," Raph sternly said.

Her phobia taking over once again, Shadow quickly pulled out of his grasp and backed away, whimpering a little.

"Holy sh**!" Peter whispered, his nose bleeding. He crawled away from the mutant and stood next to his pals, ready to wet his pants. Tim and Kev looked just as frightened as he was.

Raph glared at them as he stood up, crossing his arms. "Beat it," he growled. Immediately, the boys took off, and he turned back at Shadow, who was looking at him nervously and getting ready to take off, herself. His expression softened. "Shadow, beating those kids up won't make you any better than them."

Trying to act tough, Shadow swallowed and glared at him. "Yeah, well, what do _you_ know? You didn't even hear what they said to me!"

"I did hear them, actually," Raph softly said. "Every word."

Shadow's green eyes widened and she back up a bit. "Were...were you _spying_ on me or something?"

"No, I wasn't spying on you...well, not really. I just waited until you got off school to meet with you."

"Why?"

Raph smiled warmly at her. "Because I want to get to know you more. We _are_ family, aren't we?"

Shadow shrugged and looked down at the blood on her knuckles, though none of it belonged to her.

Raph followed her gaze and frowned. "And I heard from your parents that you have a temper problem."

"Yeah, so?" Shadow mumbled.

"I can help you with that, if you'll let me."

Shadow looked up at him in surprise. "You...you can?"

"Sure," Raph smirked. "I had the same exact problem when I was your age, so I completely understand what you're going through. It'll take time and patience, but I can teach you how to control your anger."

"I...I don't know," Shadow quietly said and looked away. "I mean, my mom took me to pretty much every therapist and councilor in New York. None of them helped."

"But you never consulted a Master ninja. Splinter taught me how to harness the fire within me. If I can do it, then so can you." He held out his hand to her. "So what do you say?"

Shadow stared at his hand and slowly reached for it, though her own hand was shaking.

Raph could see that she was scared. "It's okay," he gently told her and put his hand away. "You don't have to shake if you..."

"No!" Shadow suddenly grabbed his hand and firmly shook it. "I need to get over this stupid fear of mutants if we're gonna work together."

He smiled widely at her. "Now that's the spirit."

* * *

A young man cautiously looked around him before approaching the abandoned factory. An older, bulky man wearing dark sunglasses and black clothing stepped in front of the main entrance, glaring down at the teen. "Password," he growled.

"Dragon, Fox, and Phoenix," the young man said. The guard nodded in approval and opened the door, permitting him to come in. The teenager walked down the halls until he reached a large room, where hundreds of young men and women sat on bleachers. He went up the steps and took a seat.

A bald Japanese man named Tatsu stepped into the middle of the room, stone-faced as he approached the bleachers. "Stand at attention!" he sternly said in a heavy accent. "Master Shredder approaches." Immediately, the young people stood up and watched as an ominous shadow appeared on the concrete floor.

This new Shredder looked very similar to his predecessor. He wore a samurai-based suit of armor with blade-covered metal plaques on his shoulders, forearms and shins, and his helmet had a trident-shaped ornament on top. And like Oroku Saki, he wore a pair of extendable blades on each hand. No skin was visible, though, as he wore black material under his armor, and his face was hidden by metal ninja mask. His eyes were not human, but glowed bright red in the shadow of his helmet.

He looked up at his students. "It has been thirty years since Oroku Saki met his demise at the hands of the Ninja Turtles," his deep voice echoed behind his mask, though it sounded more mechanical than human. "But the spirit of the Shredder still lives on." He pointed to his chest. "Through _me_. And as his successor, it is my duty to rebuild the Foot Clan and make it powerful again. But I cannot do it alone. That is why I have appointed _you_ , proud men and women of New York, to be my loyal soldiers. But do not take the oath lightly. Once you become a member of the Foot, there is no turning back. There is no room for cowardice. You must be willing to defend your clan to the death, to defy those who dare to stand in our way, even if they are your own families. The penalty for desertion or failure...is death."

All of the faces in the crowd grew pale.

"So are you prepared, my students, to follow me and leave everything behind?"

"YES, MASTER SHREDDER!" the crowd unanimously shouted.

"Are you prepared to defend your father and master?"

"YES, MASTER SHREDDER!"

"Are you prepared to sell your souls to the Foot Clan?"

"YES, MASTER SHREDDER!"

The Shredder hummed approvingly. "And do not worry about our adversary, the Serpent. He is, indeed, a skilled assassin, but he is no match for the power of the Foot." Tatsu walked over to his master and placed a cage with a small snake inside on the floor. He lifted the door and the creature immediately slithered out, heading for the kids on the bleachers. Those sitting on the very bottom steps started to freak out and scream. But then the Shredder stabbed the snake right through the head with his mighty blades. He lifted the impaled serpent, which continued to dangle lifeless from his blades. "He will die by my hand should he challenge me. That is a promise. And I am sure that you are all aware of this Ninja Turtle that has emerged from the shadows once again. And I understand why you are concerned. But I assure you, he will wish that he had remained in the shadows, for he will soon face the wrath of the Shredder."

 **Oh, no! The Shredder is back! But it's not Oroku Saki? Then who is it?**

 **So I used a character from the 1990 movie, Tatsu, in case you haven't noticed. I just love using various characters from various TMNT universes. :)**

 **Also, there's a reference to the IDW comics. If you're a die-hard IDW fan, then you'll know what it is.**


	13. Like Old Times

**So a special thanks to those who have given me WONDERFUL reviews lately. Your reviews brighten my day. :)**

"Father, are you feeling all right?" Karai gently asked her father as she handed him a glass of water to help him swallow his pills.

"Yes, Miwa," Splinter softly said, taking the glass from her. "I am feeling just fine. Do not worry about me." He took the pills and leaned back in the couch, with Chompy laying his head on the rat's lap. Splinter stroked the space turtle's head, causing him to purr in contentment.

"It's just..." Karai sighed deeply, getting close to tears. "It's been a month since you had an attack, and if I'm not around to..."

"My daughter," Splinter gently placed a hand on Karai's cheek, rubbing his thumb over it. "My time _will_ come, whether we want it to or not. But your mother once told me, life is like the cherry blossoms on a tree. It is full of beauty, but it is also tragically short. That is why we must cherish every moment while we can. So instead of worrying about the future, let us enjoy the time we have together and make the most of it."

Karai only continued to look at her father with sadness in her eyes. "But still I..."

"I'm home!"

Upon hearing Raph's voice, Chompy's heard jerked up and his tail wagged furiously. The Ninja Turtle walked into the living room and sat down on a nearby chair, letting out a relaxed sigh. His pet turtle stomped over to him, affectionately nuzzling his hand.

"Drawing a lot of attention to yourself, aren't you, _Ninja Turtle_?" Karai smirked at her reptilian brother.

"I'm not doing this for the fame," Raph mumbled.

"I know," Karai giggled. "I was only kidding."

"I have seen the news," Splinter said with a warm smile. "I am proud of you, Raphael."

"Yeah, well," Raph rubbed a hand over his face, "hopefully, Leo will come to his senses and abandon the murderous vigilante life, and then there'd be _two_ Ninja Turtles fighting to protect New York. Maybe even three, if I can get through to Donnie."

"Yes, let us hope so," Splinter sadly said with his ears flattened.

Uncomfortable with the awkward silence, Raph cleared his throat. "So, um, on a lighter note, I've taken it upon myself to teach Shadow how to manage her temper."

Splinter's ears perked up and his frown turned into an amused smile. "Oh, is that right?"

"I know," Raph chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. "Ironic, isn't it?"

"No. In fact, I believe that there is no one better for the job than _you_ , Raphael."

"Next thing you know, she's gonna want me to teach her ninjutsu," Raph joked.

* * *

"Mom, why did you decide to become a kunoichi?" Shadow looked up from her homework at her mom, who was preparing dinner in the kitchen.

April looked back at her daughter in surprise. "Wow, where'd _that_ come from?"

Shadow shrugged. "Just curious."

Her mother turned the microwave on before sitting down at the table with her. "Well, after your grandpa was taken by the Kraang, I wanted nothing more than to get him back. And when Splinter saw great potential in me, he offered to train me to be a kunoichi. It took two years of intensive, grueling training, but I did it."

"Do you ever miss it?" Shadow rested her chin on her hand.

"I do," April sighed. "But I can honestly say that I'm happy with the life that I live now. After all, I have a terrific job, a loving husband..." She playfully grabbed Shadow's nose and smiled at her. "...and a beautiful daughter."

Shadow smirked and rolled her eyes before focusing them on her homework again. But she was thinking of something entirely different...

 _"This is an OWL NEWS Alert."_

April and Shadow turned their attention to the T.V. in the living room.

* * *

"Think they'll make a comic about you?" Mikey sat on the floor next to Raph, grinning at him widely. "A Ninja Turtle comic?"

"Hope not," Raph scoffed.

"Aw, come on!" Mikey whined. "Why not?! That'd be so cool!"

"Those artists would make me look ugly, I just know it."

"You're already ugly, bro."

At this, Raph grabbed Mikey in a headlock and gave him a playful noogie. His little brother cried out in surprise and tried to break free.

"Ah! Mercy! Mercy!"

"Say it."

"Raph is all-wise and powerful!"

"And?"

"And he's better than me in every possible way!"

" _And?_ "

Mikey paused for a moment before lifting his head and grinning at his brother. "And he's got a phone call."

Raph looked at him confused and raised an invisible eyebrow. "Huh?"

* * *

He snapped back to reality at the ringing of his T-phone and quickly answered it. "Hello?"

 _Well, you ignored my request._

Raph couldn't help but smirk. "You know I can't stay in the lair forever, April. But you gotta admit, this wasn't a bad idea."

 _Yeah, maybe. But we've got a problem. A major one._

"Problem?"

 _Turn on the T.V._

Without hanging up, Raph walked out of the dojo and into the living room. He grabbed the remote and turned the television on. A blonde woman was standing in front of a burning building, with firemen trying to put it out in the background.

 _"...perpetrators made off with more than $900,000. One of the employees is in critical condition and has been rushed to the hospital. According to witnesses, the man tried to fight the masked men, but was overwhelmed and beaten to a pulp. We've just received a phone video of the incident. What you're about to see is disturbing and should not be watched by young viewers."_

A video was shown of four figures dressed in black kicking and beating a man. Their faces were covered with black masks, which had big bug-like eyes and red headbands. On each headband, there was an all-too familiar symbol.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me," Raph muttered under his breath.

 _Recognize them?_ April said on the other line.

"Just what I need right now," he grumbled, rubbing his temples.

* * *

Leo stared wide-eyed at the T.V. in his apartment room, but he soon narrowed his midnight blue eyes . He felt great anger arise within him as he watched the video being replayed over and over again. He clenched his fists and his breathing grew heavy.

"So you've decided to crawl out of the woodwork," he said venomously. "You just made a very big mistake."

He jumped off the couch and quickly put on his gear. "You're not taking another innocent life," he growled. "Not on my watch."

* * *

"And you're absolutely _sure_ that you disbanded the Foot after that?" Raph asked Karai, who sat at the kitchen table with her father and brother.

"Yes," Karai firmly nodded her head. "They all returned to their families in Japan, I saw to it."

"What about your friend, Shinigami?"

Karai's expression saddened. "I haven't seen or spoken to her since."

"I thought you two were pretty tight?"

"We were, but I needed to stay behind to look after Father, and Shini was pretty upset that I wouldn't go back with her."

Raph rubbed his chin in deep thought. "So you think she may have something to do with the new Foot?"

"I doubt it," Karai shook her head. "I mean, sure, she was mad at me, but she wouldn't..."

"She's still a suspect," Raph said curtly. "Think about it. Aside from you, she's the only one who has a connection with the Foot Clan. We know for a fact that the Shredder is dead along with his goons. So we can't rule her out."

"Saki had many followers," Splinter gravely said. "Especially in Japan. Perhaps the Foot Clan's new leader is an old pupil of his."

"Well, regardless of who's behind this," Raph said, "we need to act quickly, because the more time we waste, the more casualties we'll get...on both sides."

"So you want to get to them before Leo does," Karai somberly said.

"Exactly. I'll need help, though, and I know just who to call."

* * *

"What do you mean, they disbanded?!"

"The Mutanimals just went their separate ways after the final battle with the Kraang," April calmly explained to Raph. "So I have no idea where any of them are."

"Not even Slash?"

"No. I'm sorry, Raph."

Raph growled and felt like punching the wall, but he regained his composure and took a deep breath before sitting down on the couch.

"Hey, I'd love to go with you, man," Casey took a seat next to him, "but I'm just not the radical hockey rebel that I was back when we were kids. You saw how easy it was for those dumb mutant possums to take me down."

"So I guess I'm on my own?" Raph sighed heavily. "Great."

"You're still going after them?" April looked at her friend worriedly.

"I have to, April," Raph softly told her. "It's my duty as a Ninja Turtle, after all."

"But this is the _Foot_ we're talking about here!"

"Not the original Foot, though. Most likely just a bunch of gutless wannabes."

"Still, you can't face them alone, Raph."

"Well, it doesn't look like I have much of a choice, does it?"

"What about Donnie?" Casey asked.

"Donnie's not going to help us, Casey," April said with sadness in her voice.

"You don't know that."

"I do, actually."

While the three continued to converse among themselves, Shadow secretly sat on the stairs and listened intently.

* * *

Raph spent the entire next day sitting on a rooftop, from the rising of the sun to the setting, waiting for any sign of trouble. He was dead set on reaching the Foot before Leo should they decide to strike. But he was starting to get very tired, and he suddenly remembered why he loathed patrols during his teenage years. Every now and then a pigeon would pay a visit and he'd interact with them, but overall he was _extremely_ bored.

He smiled fondly at a memory that flashed through in his head.

 _"Yo, Raph, wanna play a game of 'I Spy'?" Mikey playfully nudged him as they looked down at the streets below them, both bored out of their minds._

 _Raph shrugged. "Sure, why not?" he grumbled. "Anything to pass the time."_

 _"Okay, let's see, I spy something...yellow!"_

 _"A taxicab?"_

 _"Darn it! Okay, your turn."_

 _"I spy something..." Raph looked around and turned his head toward Leo and Donnie, who were engaged in a conversation. He smirked as he suddenly got an idea. "I spy something brown."_

 _"Oh, man, that's a tough one," Mikey rubbed his chin and his tongue stuck out as he thought long and hard about this. "Uh, is it the smoke coming out of those factories over there?"_

 _"Nope."_

 _"Uh..." Mikey looked down at the floor of the rooftop, "...the puke stain on the cement?"_

 _"Try again."_

 _"Uh...I give up, dude."_

 _Raph pointed to Leo. "It's Leo's nose!" he laughed out loud. At the sound of his brother's boisterous laughter, Leo whipped his head around and put a finger to his lips, letting out a harsh "shh"._

 _Mikey titled his head in confusion. "Huh? There's nothing brown on Leo's nose."_

"What's so funny?"

Raph turned around to find Leo standing behind him.

"Leo? What...what are you doing here?"

"Patrolling the city. What are _you_ doing here?"

"Same," Raph muttered. _Darn it! I was afraid this would happen! Now what?_

Leo sat down next to him, chuckling. "You know, it's funny. You used to hate going on patrols. How long have you been up here?"

Raph let out a yawn. "Since this morning."

Leo looked at Raph in shock. "Really? Well, that's kind of extreme, don't you think? Or are you just so eager to kick some tail?"

"Yeah, that's it." _No, it's because I didn't want any more people to die by_ your _hand tonight._

"Well, you're in luck. I'm assuming that you've already seen the news about the new Foot Clan?"

"Yeah."

"It'll be just like old times, fighting the Foot side by side." He turned to look at Raph and gave him a sad smile. "I've missed fighting alongside you, Raph."

"...Leo, listen, I need you to promise me something."

Leo raised an eyebrow at him. "Okay, what?"

Raph narrowed his eye and firmly gripped Leo's shoulder. "If we're going to work together, then you need to promise me that you won't kill anyone, and that includes the Foot."

Leo frowned at him. "Raph, I can't..."

"Just for tonight!" Raph snapped, before softening his tone. "Please, Leo. You want it to be like old times? Then no killing. At all."

Leo looked away and let out a heavy sigh. "Fine," he muttered. "But just for tonight."

They suddenly heard a distant boom and the sounds of people screaming. In the distance, about ten blocks from where Leo and Raph stood, black smoke slowly arose.

"Finally some action," Leo said, a predatory smile on his face. "Let's go, Raph."

Raph watched as Leo leapt off the rooftop and onto the next. He had already noticed Leo's creepy, bloodthirsty smile, and it sent chills down his spine.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," he whispered to himself before running after Leo.

 **Will Leo keep his promise? Or will the Serpent take over once again...?**


	14. Attack

**Okay, so the wonderful, talented Athese wrote an alternate ending to my story, "Expendable"...AND IT IS AWESOME! AHH! Go read it! Review it! It is called "Indispensable"!**

 **(Ahem) Anyway, back to the story...**

"On the floor! Right now!"

The terrified civilians did as they were told, dropping to the floor and covering their heads with their hands. Some Foot soldiers kept watch over the cowering people while the others focused on the bank vault. One of them placed a small detonater onto the steel door and pushed a button before quickly stepping away. Seconds later the device exploded along with the door, creating a large crater in the wall. The criminals wasted no time in breaking into the vault and grabbing as many bags of money as they could find. A van was parked outside the bank and waiting for them, three Foot soldiers standing next to it and keeping watch.

Raph and Leo stood on top of a nearby building and watched them. The Serpent vigilante had a scowl on his face as the thieves started to load the van with the bags. "Disgusting," he hissed. "They're like rats, aren't they?"

Raph was angered by Leo's remark. "Watch it, Leo," he snapped. "Keep in mind that our dad is a rat."

"Yeah, I know he is," Leo muttered while keeping his eyes on the Foot below. "Anyway, let's get to work." He reached for his swords but was interrupted by Raph.

"Leo!" the one-eyed Turtle whispered urgently. "Remember our deal!"

Leo said nothing and unsheathed his katanas before jumping off the rooftop. He landed on the street in front of the guards who jumped at his sudden appearance. They immediately recognized by the tattoo on his plastron. "It's him!" one of them gasped. "The Serpent!" But instead of running away like most criminals, they drew out their swords and prepared themselves for a fight.

Leo snorted in disbelief and charged at them at an incredible speed. The one closest to him didn't even have time to defend himself and received a kick in the face. He was sent flying into another Foot, the both of them crashing to the ground. The remaining one came at him and let out a battle cry. Leo quickly blocked his opponent's blade with his own, and with his other katana, he sliced the weaker blade right in half. The Foot soldier stumbled backwards and gasped softy as he stared at what was left of weapon. The second he looked back up, his face collided with Leo's fist and fell to the ground unconscious.

"What the..?!" The Foot soldiers that were inside the bank were now outside with bags of money in their hands. They immediately dropped the loot and unsheathed their swords.

Raph stood next to Leo and drew his twin sai out, smirking mischievously at the Foot. "You kids need a lesson in banking, 'cause this is _not_ how you make a withdr..."

Leo dashed toward them before Raph could even finish. Everything felt so backwards. Thirty years ago, Leo was the one who came up with corny heroic quotes while Raph would charge headfirst into battle. The Ninja Turtle merely shrugged and joined in on the fight.

Keeping his word, Leo refrained himself from slaughtering any of the Foot soldiers, but Raph still kept an eye on his brother during the entire battle. The criminals were hardly a challenge for the Turtles, and soon only one Foot soldier was left standing.

Leo glared at the young man with cruel white eyes. "Surrender," he said in a low threatening voice.

The ninja breathed heavily underneath his mask but refused to stand down. "The Foot never surrenders!" he spat before charging at the Serpent, who only shook his head and ran toward him. In a flash, the vigilante cut the boy's right arm off, much to the shock and horror of Raph. The Foof ninja screamed in pain and agony as he fell to the ground, a puddle of blood quickly forming around him. Leo remained indifferent to his suffering and roughly grabbed him by the front of his shirt, lifting him up closer to his face.

"Leo!" Raph shouted angrily. "You _promised_!"

"He still lives," Leo calmly said. "For now anyway." He got nose to nose with the sobbing ninja. "Now listen, scumbag. You're going to tell me everything I need to know, and for every time you don't answer my questions, I will cut off a limb. You've already lost an arm." He placed his katana over the ninja's left arm, the cold steel threatening to slice through his flesh. "First question: where is your headquarters located?"

"I-I-I can't..." the ninja stuttered.

Leo snarled and raised his sword over his head, preparing to strike.

"W-wait!" the ninja screamed in desperation. "Please! Please! Okay, okay...y-you know that-that old abandoned factory _Hecto Company_? That's...that's where we're all get together and-and train."

"Who's your leader?" Leo asked.

"The-the Shredder."

Leo's eyes widened and he turned to look at Raph, who was just as surprised as he. He turned back at the ninja with a scowl on his face. "That's impossible. Shredder is dead."

"I-I don't mean Oroku Saki," the ninja explained. "This is a-a new Shredder."

"Who is he?"

"I-I don't know."

Leo raised his sword once again.

" _I-SWEAR-I-DON'T-KNOW!"_ the young man screamed.

"LEO!" Raph quickly grabbed Leo's hand, preventing him from bringing the sword down. "Stop! He doesn't know!"

Leo glared up at him. "He could be lying."

"Something tells me he isn't," Raph glared back.

The van suddenly sped away, and the Turtles realized that a Foot ninja was inside the vehicle the entire time, hiding and listening to the interrogation. Leo immediately let go of the injured ninja and ran after the van, but it was too far away for him to caught up to. He let out a frustrated grunt and gestured for Raph to follow him. "Come on, Raph! Let's go!"

Raph remained frozen where he stood.

"Please," the Foot soldier moaned in pain. "I-I need...losing a lot of blood..."

" _Raph!_ "

Said Turtle looked at the bleeding ninja on the ground then back at Leo. "First we take him to a hospital, then we go look for the Shredder."

"Leave him," Leo said in a cold voice. "We've got more important things to do."

"But he'll die of blood loss!"

"If he dies, then he dies. He condemned himself to this fate the moment he joined the Foot. And that driver is going to warn the Shredder that we know his whereabouts. We need to strike now before he has the chance to be prepared!"

"I'm not going to let this kid die, Leo," Raph glared at his brother before kneeling down to sling the boy's only arm over his shoulder and lifting him up.

"And I'm going to go face the Shredder," Leo glared back. "With or without you, Raph."

Raph stared at Leo for a moment. He wanted to help this kid, but at the same time, he wanted to help his brother take down the Shredder. He could feel the boy's body tremble and hear his breathing grow heavier. He was running out of time. He made up his mind. "No, I'm going to the hospital." He then took off, leaving Leo alone on the street.

Leo felt betrayed and hurt that Raph was willing to abandon him in order to save some Foot scumbag. But those feelings were quickly replaced with anger and resentment. "Fine," he muttered before running in the direction where the van went.

 _I don't need your help, anyway._

* * *

Splinter opened his eyes as he finished his daily meditation in the dojo. He smiled fondly at the picture of Michelangelo and tenderly touched the glass with his wrinkled fingertips. "Goodnight, my son," he whispered to his youngest son's spirit. "I will see you again in the morning."

He started to get up but then suddenly felt a sharp pain in his chest.

 _Oh, no...I know this pain...It's another heart attack...!_

He gasped loudly as he clutched his robe, dropping to the floor and knocking the porcelain bowl aside in the process. He tried to call out for Karai, but all that came out of his mouth were gasps of pain. He couldn't even breathe.

His time had finally come.

He could feel his strength slowly leaving him and rested his head on the carpet. Lying in front of him were the bloodied remains of Michelangelo's orange mask. Using whatever strength he had left, Splinter reached for the fabric and clutched it in his grasp.

Even though he knew he was dying, he was not afraid. In fact, he felt at peace.

For after thirty years of living in darkness and despair, the light that was Michelangelo's legacy had returned to brighten their souls once again. He prayed that his sons Donatello and Leonardo would one day find that light and return home. But he had confidence in Raphael and was grateful to him for bringing hope back to the family.

Splinter felt his eyelids growing heavy. The only sound he could hear was his heartbeat, which was beginning to slow down.

 _Forgive me, Miwa, but I must leave you now...I will tell your mother that you send your love..._

 _Raphael, thank you for everything...It will not be easy bringing our family back together again, but I have all the confidence in you..._

 _Donatello...Leonardo...do not let your hate consume and destroy your souls...free yourselves of it and come back home..._

 _Please come back home...my sons..._

He slowly closed his brown eyes, entering into a world of darkness and silence...

He felt someone gently touch his shoulder. Opening his eyes, he was met with two familiar faces that he had missed so dearly.

"Hello, my love."

"Hey, Master Splinter! Welcome home!"

He laughed tearfully as he lifted himself up and embraced his beloved wife and son.

* * *

Leo was now standing at the entrance of the _Hecto Company_ factory. He half-expected guards to be waiting for him, but there were none. With great caution, he walked down the halls and eventually reached the main room, which was dark and completely empty, not a single soul in sight.

 _Could they have evacuated the building and moved to a different location? Darn it, Raph! This is all_ your _fault! If_ you _weren't so persistent on sparing their lives, they wouldn't have-_

The ceiling lights suddenly switched on. Leo's heart jumped and he drew his swords outs, preparing himself for an ambush. He instead heard heavy metallic footsteps getting closer and closer...

"Welcome, Serpent."

Leo turned his head to find a figure in a suit of armor stepping into the room. His glowing red eyes stared into the Turtle's midnight blue ones. "We've been expecting you," he said in a deep, mechanical voice.

As soon as he said those words, the doors behind Leo slammed shut. Several Foot soldiers locked the vigilante in, and even more slithered out of the shadows around him. But they didn't draw their weapons out. They merely stared at him him with their big bug eyes.

Leo was getting more and more uncomfortable by the minute, but he put on a straight face and faced his main adversary. "So you're the new Shredder?"

"I am," the mysterious man responded. "I am the Foot Clan's new leader and master, the successor to Oroku Saki."

The Turtle smirked and rested a katana on his shoulder in an effort to make himself appear calm and unperturbed. "I slaughtered Oroku Saki, you know." He slowly circled the room, with the Shredder following suit. "He didn't stand a chance against my wrath. So what make you think that _you_ have a chance against me?"

"I am neither man nor mutant," the Shredder said. "I am a _demon_."

Leo couldn't help but laugh at this person's ridiculous boast. "A demon, huh? Well, if you're a demon, then I'm the Devil, himself." He pointed his sword at the Shredder. "No one can defeat me, not even _you_. And your lackeys are about to see why all of New York trembles at the very mention of my name."

The Shredder extended his long, glistening blades, laughing cruelly. "Come, Serpent. Entertain me."

Leo let out a battle roar and charged at the Shredder, who remained where he stood. The Turtle attacked with great speed and force, but the Shredder blocked and avoided every swipe, kick, and blow with ease.

 _He's good, but I'm better,_ Leo told himself as he continued to fight. But as the minutes passed, he became more tired and discouraged. Even with everything he had, he couldn't even _touch_ this guy. Was he truly a demon?

The Foot soldiers in the room chanted and cheered for their master, which aggravated Leo even more. _This is all just a_ game _to them! All right. They want entertainment? I'll give them entertainment._

Leo suddenly took a giant leap over the Shredder's head and landed on the floor behind him. Just as the Shredder turned to face him, Leo sliced his head clean off his shoulders. The loud clanging noise that the metallic helmet made as it bounced off the ground echoed in the room. There were a few audible gasps of horror, and some of the Foot ninja even puked. Leo smiled triumphantly but then frowned when he noticed that the body was still standing in a frozen position.

Confused, Leo slowly walked toward the headless body...

...then without warning, an arm swiped at the Turtle, the blades slashing him across the face.

Leo screamed in pain and covered his bleeding face, dropping to his knees. He was too distracted by the pain to notice the body _walking_ to where the head lay, picking it up and placing it back onto its shoulders. There was a loud _click_ as the head latched itself back on, and the red eyes returned.

"I told you," the Shredder said with a dark chuckle. "I am a demon. No one can kill me."

He walked over to where Leo knelt, stood behind him, and harshly kicked him to the floor. "On your belly, snake," he growled. He then placed his metallic foot on Leo's carapace and started to apply more pressure. Leo grunted and hissed in pain, then started to scream as he felt his shell starting to crack. His cries were drowned out by the cheers of the Foot ninjas. He felt like he was going to pass out from the pain...

Something smashed through the skylights above Leo and the Shredder, shards of glass raining down upon them. The Ninja Turtle roared as he dived toward the Shredder, drawing his twin sai out.

The leader of the Foot jumped out of the way before Raph could land right on top of him. The one-eyed warrior growled threateningly at him and stood protectively in front of Leo. "Stay away from my brother," Raph hissed.

"Well, now," the Shredder chuckled. "Look who else decided to _drop in_. We finally meet, Ninja Turtle."

"Who are you?" Raph demanded.

"Who am I? I am the Shredder."

"I know that! But what's your _real_ name?"

"I have many names...Torrinon...Kako Naso...Duke Acureds...the Shredder."

Raph was even more confused now, but before he could ask any more questions, he heard Leo groan on the floor. He had to get his brother treated as soon as possible. "We'll settle this some other time," he gruffly told the Shredder as he helped Leo onto his feet.

"Oh, no, please," Shredder said. "Stay a little longer. Entertain me."

"Sorry, show's over," Raph pulled out a ninja smoke bomb and threw it to the ground. The two Turtles disappeared in a puff of purple smoke.

The Foot soldiers gasped in awe, whispering to each other. "Dude, did you see that?" "That was pretty cool!" "So the Ninja Turtle and the Serpent are brothers?"

"Now do you see, my students?" Shredder called for their attention, which he immediately received. "How weak the Serpent is compared to _me_? Had the Ninja Turtle not interfered, I would've crushed him, because I am stronger and better than he is! Well, he won't be so lucky next time. And his brother will suffer the same fate should he try to interfere once again."

Tatsu appeared in the room and stood next to the Shredder, raising his fist high in the air. "HAIL, MASTER SHREDDER! LONG LIVE THE FOOT!"

The Foot soldiers raised their fists, as well. "HAIL, MASTER SHREDDER! LONG LIVE THE FOOT!"

* * *

"Hey! I need help over here!"

Raph ran into the living room of the lair while supporting his injured brother. When he arrived, April was sitting on the couch and being held by Casey. They lifted their heads at the sound of his voice and looked in his direction. Both of their eyes were red and puffy.

The Ninja Turtle suddenly got a very bad feeling. "What...what's going on?"

Casey and April jumped off the couch and ran over to them. April looked over Leo in concern. "What happened to him, Raph?" she frantically asked.

"His shell's been cracked," Raph told her. "He tried to take on the Foot by himself. He needs medical attention right away."

April turned to her husband. "Casey, call Harold. Tell him it's urgent." Casey nodded and pulled out his phone, dialing a number.

"Come on, Raph, let's get him on the couch," April slung Leo's other arm over her shoulder and helped Raph carry him over to the couch. They gently laid him down and put a pillow under his head. Leo flinched as soon as his shell touched the soft cushion and let out a moan.

Raph knelt down to caresses his brother's cheek. "You'll be okay, bro," he softly said. He looked up at April and frowned as he once again took notice of her weary appearance. "April, you look awful. What's the matter?"

April opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Her blue eyes welled up with tears, which quickly spilled down her cheeks as she looked down at the carpet and hugged herself.

Raph stood up and gently placed his hands on her shoulders. "April, tell me what's wrong."

She finally looked up at him and choked out, "It's Master Splinter...!"

* * *

He ran into the dojo, and the first he saw was Karai laying her head on Splinter's chest, weeping for her father.

Raphael forgot how to breathe. The whole room was spinning.

He took wobbly steps toward his father and sister and fell to his knees. Splinter looked so peaceful as though he were only sleeping.

But Raph knew that his father wasn't asleep.

With trembling hands, he carefully lifted Splinter's head and laid it on his lap. His eye burned with tears as he looked down upon his father's worn but serene face.

 _"Go to sleep, my son," Splinter softly told four year old Raphael, who had his head in his father's lap._

 _"I don't wanna!" he whined, struggling to get up but couldn't due to his father's hand on his head which was gently pushing him back down._

 _"Shh," Splinter hushed. "You must get some rest."_

 _"No!" Raph started to cry, pounding his fists on Splinter's knees, which, of course, didn't hurt._

 _With his other hand, Splinter stroked Raph's head and began to sing a Japanese lullaby which he had heard from his own mother. At first, Raph refused to listen and continued to fight, but he eventually got tired and gave in. He slowly closed his emerald green eyes as the words of the lullaby guided him into the world of dreams._

 _Splinter smiled lovingly at his sleeping baby. "Goodnight, Raphael."_

Raph hugged his father close and buried his face in his furry neck, letting out muffled sobs.

 _Goodnight, Master Splinter._

 **Splinter's death in this fic is based on his death in the Mirage comics (he died of a heart attack).**

 **And an important note, next chapter will be the last chapter of "Mourning". But don't panic! There's a sequel on the way, which will be further explained next time!**


	15. Light In The Darkness

**Okay, so here we are, the last chapter of "Mourning"…Been so anxious to get to this particular chapter...**

 **Also, if you haven't read my stories "Guilt and Forgiveness", "The Cherry Blossom Tree", and "Malfunction", then please take the time to do so. Those side stories will help explain some things in "Mourning", like Raph and Mikey's spiritual connection and the "bug" in the training simulation that Donnie will mention in this chapter.**

Donatello leaned back in his office chair and took a sip out of his coffee cup. "Chet?"

The computer's voice echoed in the lab, _**Yes, Donatello?**_

"Do I have any new messages?"

 _ **Checking. Yes, You Have 1 Message.**_

"Let me hear it."

 _Beep._

 _"Donnie? It's me, April."_

Donnie's eyes widened at the sound of April's voice. _How'd she get this number?_

 _"Listen, I...I know that you're really busy..."_

He heard her let out a shaky sigh. Was she crying?

 _"...but...but Splinter died last night. He had a heart attack."_

"...What?" He nearly dropped his coffee cup in shock.

 _"The funeral's today. We're holding it in the lair. Karai's going to take his ashes to Japan tomorrow morning. Please try to come, Donnie. If you're on a tight schedule, then just stay for five minutes. Five minutes. That's all I'm asking. Okay? Bye."_

 _ **End Of Message.**_

Donnie let out a sigh of disbelief and rested his forehead on his hands. He thought he'd be prepared for this day. People die, after all. Nobody lives forever. Master Splinter said it himself thirty years ago: _"You cannot expect anything to last forever...even...family."_

So why did it hurt so much?

 _"He_ loved _you like a son."_

 _"The 'love' he had for me or any of his sons was merely a result of the hormone Oxytocin. It's just a chemical reaction."_

Yeah, that's all it ever was. A chemical reaction. Besides, even if he _wanted_ to attend the funeral, he couldn't due to his schedule. He was a very busy Turtle, and time was money.

 _"I'm worried about you, Donnie. All you've been doing lately is work, work, and more work."_

Donnie winced as he remembered Mi...the bug that he experienced in the training simulation.

 _"We have to make things right again. You guys need to go see Master Splinter and forgive him before it's too late."_

The clock that was hanging on the wall continued to tick, the only sound that could be heard in the lab.

 _It's_ already _too late,_ Donnie thought to himself. _So why even bother coming?_

* * *

"Thanks for coming, Shadow," Karai softly said as the teenager hung her coat on a nearby rack.

"No problem," Shadow smiled sadly at her. Her heart broke for the former kunoichi. After all, she couldn't imagine losing her own dad to a heart attack. In her hands was a bouquet of white roses, and she presented them to Karai. "These are for...for your Dad."

"Oh, thank you, sweetie," Karai said. "You can put it with the other flowers in the dojo."

As Shadow walked out of the living room, she passed by the couch and saw her parents sitting on the couch with Raphael, who was looking down at the floor in sadness. April soothing rubbed his shell but didn't say a word. Casey noticed his daughter walking by and greeted her with a half smile and a nod.

When she walked into the dojo, the first thing she saw was a porcelain cremation urn standing on a small table in front of the tree, along with several photos of Splinter and his family. On the urn was a beautiful Japanese painting of a dragon, sakura tree, and even small turtles swimming in a pond. Sympathy wreaths and bouquets surrounded the table. Shadow knelt down and placed her own bouquet next to the others.

She stood back up and looked at a photo of the late Master ninja before he mutated. He was standing next to a beautiful woman who was holding a baby, obviously Karai, in her arms. Based on what her mother told her, Hamato Yoshi was a brave, honorable man who had always placed others before himself and was not afraid to defend the helpless and weak. He also loved his family more than anything in the world, and it absolutely crushed his soul to have been forced to sacrifice one of his children.

Shadow picked up a photo of the late Michelangleo, who was posing in front of the mutant rat and had a goofy look on his face. She giggled at the way he stuck out his tongue and crossed his eyes. She heard many stories about Mikey from her parents. He was the funny one of the group as well as the most optimistic, and he had this gift of seeing the good in everyone and lifting their spirits. Of the four brothers, he had the biggest heart, and it sadly stopped beating at such a young age. It saddened her to think that such a kind-hearted person had to die the way he did. In front of his family, for that matter.

 _No wonder this family is so screwed up,_ she thought to herself.

* * *

He poured another shot of Karai's Japanese wine and gulped it down. He couldn't remember the last time he had a drink, but, boy, he sure needed it now. He reached up to touch the two scars across his right eye and beak. The Jones' old friend, Harold Lillja, said that though his shell would naturally heal on its own, the scars were there to stay forever. On the table next to the bottle of wine was his black mask, ripped in half from his battle with the Shredder.

Upon hearing heavy footsteps approach the kitchen, Leo turned his head to find Chompy peeking his head in and staring at him. The drunken Turtle merely scowled at him. "What are _you_ looking at?" He threw the small glass at the giant space turtle but missed by a few feet. The glass shattered on the floor and Chompy ran off whimpering.

Raph heard the commotion and saw his pet scrambling away from the kitchen. "Oh, now what?" he mumbled.

"Leo's in there, right?" Casey asked. "How's he holding up?"

"He's doing better thanks to Harold," April somberly said. "But due to the crack in his shell, he won't be doing any more...crime fighting for a couple of months."

"That's not what I meant, honey."

"I know," April lowered her eyes. "He's taking Splinter's death very hard."

"That's not it," Raph quietly said, earning confused looks from Casey and April. "He's more upset about losing to the Shredder than he is about Father's passing."

April gently put a hand on his shoulder. "Raph, I don't think that's..."

"He's the Serpent. He's supposed to be unbeatable, yet the Shredder kicked his shell right in front of all those kids. It's the biggest slap in the face for him."

"Then you should go talk to him. He needs you right now."

His gut was telling him _not_ to go into the kitchen and interfere with Leo's moping, but...

Leo was too wasted to even notice his brother walking into the kitchen and poured wine into another glass.

"Leo?"

Said Turtle visibly flinched at the familiar voice then closed his eyes. "Leave me alone," he bitterly said without turning to face Raph.

Raph stared at the large bandages wrapped around his shell, covering the ugly crack. "So, um," he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly as he slowly approached his brother. "How-how are you feeling?"

Leo didn't respond and gulped down his wine before pouring another shot.

"Whoa, take it easy there, chief," Raph said. "Don't you think you've had enough drinks?"

"Don't tell me what to do, Raph," Leo snapped, glancing back at Raph coldly.

Raph held his hands out defensively. "Hey, I'm just trying to help."

"Well, you've helped quite enough, thank you."

Raph's eye widened before he narrowed it in anger. "Don't pin this on _me_ , Leo."

Leo chuckled bitterly. "Well, it _is_ your fault. If you weren't so insistent on sparing their lives..."

"It's wrong to kill people, even if they are the Foot."

"The Foot killed Mikey. Have you forgotten about that? Or do you even care at all?" Leo's voice was full of hurt and resentment. "'Cause it seems to me that you care more about them than you do me."

"What are you...?"

"You left me to face the Shredder alone. Just so you can save that Foot ninja's life."

Raph had had enough. He didn't care whether this was Leo talking or the alcohol. "Okay, now you're just being a big baby," he growled. "So you lost to the Shredder. Big deal, get over it. It's not the first time you..."

"I DIDN'T JUST LOSE!" Leo screamed and banged his fist on the table, startling Raph. He pointed to the scars on his face. "I WAS _HUMILIATED_!"

Raph said nothing and continued to stare at his brother in shock. The vigilante breathed heavily and his entire body trembled with rage. His blue eyes were now tiny shaky dots. It was completely silent in the kitchen, though they could hear murmurs in the living room and then the sound of someone running into the kitchen.

April appeared and grabbed Raph by the arm, gently pulling him away. "Uh, Raph, your friend Ronny is here," she said with a forced smile. "Why don't...why don't you introduce him to the others and show him around?"

Raph didn't take his eye off Leo as he was being pulled out of the kitchen. Leo merely tuned his shell to him and gulped down his wine.

* * *

"Hey, Raph!" Ronny waved at his reptilian friend with one hand while holding a tin foil pan full of food in the other.

"Yo, Ronny!" Raph smiled and waved back. "Thanks for coming. So what's in the pan?"

"Chicken enchiladas," Ronny lifted the lid to reveal the pans contents.

"Did you say, 'enchiladas'?" Shadow ran up to the cook and looked in the pan. "Awesome! I love enchiladas!"

"Where's your kitchen?" the Hispanic cook asked Raph. "I can set it on your table and..."

"That's okay," Karai quickly took the pan from him. "I'll take it to the kitchen, myself. You're a guest here, after all. In the meantime, what would you like to drink?"

"Just a glass of water would be great," Ronny said. He heard a low growling sound behind him and nearly jumped out of his skin when he turned to see what it was. Chompy sniffed the cook's legs and looked up at him with his big purple eyes, his tongue hanging out of his mouth and his tail wagging.

Raph chuckled and knelt down next to Chompy. "He likes ya."

"Yeah?" Ronny gulped as the giant space turtle affectionately nuzzled his hand. "This your dog?"

"Actually, he's a fire breathing turtle from outer space," Raph scratched the top of Chompy's head.

"Huh, I see," Ronny reached to pet Chompy but then paused and drew his hand back. "Wait, did you say that he _breathes fire_?"

* * *

"So this is Mikey?" Ronny pointed to the late Turtle in a family photo. "He's a cute kid."

"Well, he was known as the Cute One," Casey chuckled before taking another bite of his enchilada. The whole group, excluding Leo and Karai, sat in the living room and looked through a photo album. Raph and Ronny sat on the couch, April and Casey sat on the steps leading to T.V. area, and Shadow sat on a beanie bag. Karai remained in the dojo praying to her father, while Leo continued to mope and drink in the kitchen.

"And what did they call _you_?" Ronny turned to Raph.

"The Warrior," Raph said with a smug smile.

"I'll bet," Ronny laughed. He looked back down at the photo and pointed to Leo. "And this is...?"

Raph's smile turned into a frown and he looked at the picture disheartened. "That's Leo, the eldest brother."

"And he couldn't come today?"

"Actually he _is_ here. He's in the kitchen."

"Oh, he is?" Ronny started to get off the couch. "Well, then, I'd better introduce my..."

"No!" Raph roughly grabbed him by the arm. "No, it's best if you _didn't_ , Ronny. Just trust me."

The cook raised an eyebrow but sat back down nonetheless. "Okay? So I take it that the pretty young lady standing next to you there is Mrs. O'Neil?"

"Well, she may not be young anymore," Casey leaned over to kiss April on the cheek, "but she's still pretty. No, I take that back. She's even more beautiful than before." April blushed and looked at the floor.

"Get a room, you two," Shadow teased while eating her enchilada.

"Well, I can't say the same thing about you, Jones," Raph chuckled while pointing to the young Casey in the photo. "You were never even pretty to begin with."

Shadow, Ronny, and April laughed out loud while Casey glared at his soon-to-be-ex-best friend.

"Heh, so, um, anyway," Ronny cleared his throat and turned his attention back to the photo, "who's the Turtle with the gap toothed smile?"

"Donnie," he heard April say barely below a whisper.

"Huh? What was that? Did you say he name is...?" Ronny raised his to look at April, only to find that she was staring wide-eyed at something behind him. So was Casey. He followed their gaze and saw another mutant Turtle standing at the entrance to the lair.

Raph couldn't believe his eyes. "Donnie..." he whispered.

His brother was now some kind of cyborg Turtle. Even his eyes had been replaced with robotic ones. He recalled Mikey telling him that their brother was like a robot now, but he figured that Mikey was speaking figuratively and not literally.

Donnie stared at everyone impassively before speaking in a monotone voice, "So where's Master Splinter?"

* * *

Karai heard someone enter the dojo and turned to see who it was. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw Donatello approach her.

"Oh, my gosh," Karai softly said. "Donnie? Well, this is...this is a-a pleasant surprise."

Donnie didn't even look at her and walked past her to the table. "If you don't mind, Karai," he said with his shell to her, "I'd like to spend a few minutes with Master Splinter. Alone."

"Oh, of-of course," Karai immediately left the room, giving the privacy Donnie needed.

Donnie stared at the beautiful urn which contained his father's ashes. Though he could not understand why, he felt the need to touch it with his robotic right arm. And soon as his metallic fingertips made contact with the porcelain surface, a shiver immediately traveled up his arm and then down his spine. He found himself letting out a shaky sigh.

Why was he feeling like this?

From the corner of his eye, he saw someone standing in front of the weapons rack. He turned to see the familiar Hamato symbol on the back of the person's scarlet robe. Donnie felt a lump form in his throat when Splinter turned his head to look at him and give him a warm, loving smile.

Donnie immediately closed his eyes and shook his head in an attempt to rid himself of the hallucination. When he opened his eyes, 'Splinter' was gone.

What was happening to him? Had he gone insane? First, he was seeing his dead brother. Now he was seeing his dead father.

 _Must be the stress from work,_ he reasoned. _I just need another cup of coffee._

* * *

"Leo, do you want some coffee?" Karai asked the Turtle, who didn't respond to her and had his head buried in his folded arms. The wine bottle had been completely emptied of its contents. She sighed and soothingly rubbed his shell when she heard someone walking into the kitchen.

It was Donnie.

The cyborg Turtle had a surprised look on his face when he saw the familiar carapace of his eldest brother. "Leo...?"

The former leader jerked his head up at the sound of the second youngest's voice and swiftly turned his head.

The two brothers locked eyes, not saying a word or making a single sound.

Raph slowly and quietly walked into the kitchen, watching the two simply stare at each other.

 _Well, it's now or never._

"So...here we all are!" Raph attempted to sound cheerful. "After thirty years of being separated from each other!" He playfully slapped Donnie on the shoulder, who didn't even flinch and kept his eyes on Leo. "Donnie, why don't you have a seat and I'll whip us up a couple of drinks. Non-alcoholic, of course." He turned to Leo and winked at him. "We've got a lot of catching up to do, guys." He grabbed Donnie's normal arm and attempted to pull him toward the table.

But Donnie wouldn't even move. Eventually, he narrowed his red robotic eyes at Leo and a scowl appeared on his face.

Raph noticed the change in Donnie's expression. _Oh, no, no, no. Please, Donnie, don't..._

"Know what?" Donnie said in a low, cold voice. "I'll just get coffee on the way to the work." He jerked his arm out of Raph's grasp and quickly left the kitchen.

April looked up from the photo album in time to see Donnie storm out of the lair. "Donnie, where are you going?" she called out to him.

The Turtle paid no attention to her and continued to walk away.

"DONNIE!" Raph ran out of the kitchen and followed his brother into the tunnels. "Donnie, will you just hold on for one _second_?!"

The cyborg Turtle immediately stopped in his tracks but didn't turn to look at his brother.

"Donnie," Raph walked up to him and gently put a hand on his shoulder. "Please don't go. We haven't seen you for so long. I _missed_ you, bro. So much. And I know that Leo missed you, too. So why don't you come back inside and..."

"I know what you're trying to do, Raph," Donnie glanced back at Raph and shrugged his hand off his shoulder. "And it's not going to work."

Raph looked at his brother sadly. "Come on, Donnie, don't be that way."

Donnie turned to fully face him. "Well, what did you expect, Raph? Did you really believe that things would go back to the way they were when we were kids? Those days are _over_. Get used to it."

"Let me ask you something, Donnie," Raph calmly said. "Can you honestly say that you're happy with your life?"

"What do you care?" Donnie asked with bitterness in his voice. "You showed me just how much you care when you left me behind in North Hampton."

Raph felt those words stab at his heart and he lowered his eye in shame. "I know, Donnie. I won't deny that I've been a horrible brother to you." He looked back up at Donnie and gave him a sad smile. "But things are going to be different from now on. I'll never leave you again, bro." He wrapped his arms around his brother in a hug. "I promise."

As Raph pulled him into a hug, Donnie began to feel a warmth that he hadn't felt in thirty years since...

He looked over Raph's shoulder and saw Mikey standing at the other end of the tunnel and smiling at him. His bright blue eyes twinkled and his bright orange mark stood out in the dark.

Before he even realized what he was doing, he reached an arm out to his younger brother. His robotic arm. He stared at the metal that was once green scaly flesh. The warmth in his heart slowly began to fade away.

He was no longer Donatello the Ninja Turtle or Donatello the Inventor. He was now Donatello the Machine.

He returned his gaze to Mikey, but his brother was no longer there. _Another hallucination._

Donnie abruptly pushed Raph away, who looked both confused and hurt. "That's nice, Raph," he said with no emotion in his voice. "But what about Leo? Is he on board with this, too?"

"He's going through some things right now," Raph somberly said. "We just have to be there for him as his brothers."

"That person sitting in the kitchen is _not_ my brother," Donnie growled. "He's not the Leonardo we knew and loved anymore. He's just a common criminal. A murderer. In fact, if we weren't having Splinter's funeral, I would have arrested him right on the spot. But next time, I won't show any mercy."

Raph felt the tears building up. "No, Donnie..."

"And if you _really_ want to be a hero, Raph," he pointed a finger at the Ninja Turtle, "you'll turn him in to the police and make him pay for his crimes."

Raph firmly shook his head. "You know I can't do that, Donnie."

Donnie narrowed his eyes and turned away with a scoff. "Well, then if he kills someone again in the near future, the blood will be on _your_ hands." And with that he continued down the tunnel, ignoring his brother's calls and disappearing into the darkness.

* * *

Raph walked back into the lair with a tired expression and a heavy heart. The others were still sitting in the T.V. area and talking amongst themselves, though April looked in his direction and asked him with her eyes if Donnie was coming back. Raph shook his head in response and the reporter let out a heavy sigh.

 _Everything is so messed up,_ Raph sadly thought to himself. _Donnie's right. Things can't go back to the way they were before. And I can't protect Leo from the police forever. Maybe it would be best if I..._

He suddenly felt someone painfully grab him by the arm and jerk him away from the living room and into the kitchen. He soon found himself nearly nose to nose with Leo, who was looking at him with white eyes filled with indescribable rage.

"I know what you're _really_ after," he said with venom in his voice. "You're trying to prove to everyone that you're _better_ than me. Ever since we were little, you've been fighting for Splinter's attention, but you just couldn't accept that he favored _me_ over _you_."

Raph could smell the alcohol in Leo's breath. _He's drunk,_ he thought. _Better calm him down before he hurts someone._ He gently put a hand on Leo's shoulder. "Leo, that's not it..." he started to softly say, but Leo angrily slapped his hand off his shoulder.

"Who are you kidding?" he hissed. "I've spent the last thirty years cleaning up New York while _you_ wasted them playing Tarzan in North Hampton. Not to mention that you completely abandoned Donnie instead of being there for him. And _now_ look what's happened to him."

He briefly closed his eyes and bit his lower lip. When he opened his eyes, the midnight blue irises were back, and tears were building up. "And last time I checked, it wasn't _my_ fault Mikey was killed."

Raph visibly flinched at that remark, and he opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

Leo narrowed his eyes at him. "Don't act so innocent. You and I both know that Mikey would still be with us...if you had just kept your _F***ING_ MOUTH SHUT!"

As soon as he screamed those words, Leo swung his empty wine bottle at Raph's face. The glass shattered and Raph fell to the floor, groaning in pain and holding his hand to his bleeding left cheek.

Leo showed no remorse and continued to scream at his injured brother. "STILL THINK YOU'RE BETTER THAN ME?! HUH?! _DO YOU?!_ " He took a step toward Raph with the broken bottle still in his hand.

"LEO!" Karai ran up to them and stood protectively in front of Raph. In her hands was a sheathed katana, and she gripped the handle, warning Leo not to take another step.

"Oh, my god! Raph!" April ran to the Ninja Turtle and knelt down to check him over. "Are you okay?!"

"Leo! The _heck_ were you thinking, man?!" Casey stood next to his wife, glaring at the drunken vigilante.

Shadow peeked behind the couch, feeling very frightened about the current situation. She didn't even notice Chompy hiding next to her.

Ronny had just walked into the living room after using the bathroom and was shocked to find Raph on the floor, surrounded by shards of glass and bleeding.

Leo said nothing for a while, staring at the people whom he once called his "friends". They were now looking at him as though he were the enemy. He suddenly realized that he was still holding the broken wine bottle and immediately dropped it. His rage had completely evaporated and was replaced with remorse. "Oh, my god," he whispered, his eyes wide with shock. "I'm so sorr-" He looked down at Raph, who continued to hold his cheek. "Raph? Wh-what have I...? I'm so...I'm so sorry, bro." He was about to check on his younger brother, but then Karai abruptly shoved him away.

"I think you should leave, Leo," she said in a low threatening voice. " _Now_."

Leo held his hands up, trying to show that he had no intention of harming Raph any further. "Karai, please. I hurt him. I need to see if he's okay."

"Well, right now, you're a danger to everyone here," Karai continued to glare at him. "And what's worse is that you decided to pull this kind of crap at my father's _funeral_. I want you to leave my home, Leo."

The vigilante could see that there was no changing her mind and sighed in defeat. "Okay, Karai. I'll leave. I apologize for my inappropriate behavior." He bowed to her and turned to leave, but he stopped briefly to look back at Raph. His eyes brimmed with tears as he whispered, "I'm so sorry, Raph."

Even though he was in great pain, Raph managed to open his eye and watch Leo walk out of the lair, his vision blurred with tears of his own.

* * *

Eric Davis woke up at the sound of the sliding window being opened. He turned his head to see a dark figure with red glowing eyes stepping into the hospital room.

"Who-who's there?" he asked fearfully.

"It is I," the figure said in a deep mechanical voice.

"M-Master Shredder?"

"Yes, child," the Shredder walked over to young man's bed and loomed over him. "I see that the Serpent has bitten you with his 'fangs'." He pointed to the stub that used to Eric's arm.

Eric swallowed nervously and his forehead started to sweat. "M-Master Shredder, I-I-I didn't mean to-to betray you. Please forgive me."

"There is no need to apologize," the Shredder gently put a hand on the boy's shoulder.

"But..."

"I have finally put the Serpent in his place. And I have you to thank for that, Davis. You have served me well."

Hearing those words come out of his master's mouth made Eric feel more relaxed, proud even.

The Shredder leaned over and placed his fist under Eric's chin. "And so I repay you with a quick death."

Eric's eyes widen and he was getting ready to scream, but the Shredder was too quick and slit his throat with his blades. The villainous ninja simply wiped the blood off with the blanket of the bed.

"Forgive me, Davis," the Shredder said with no emotion or remorse. "But we can't have anyone revealing the secrets of the Foot Clan to the outside world. You must take those secrets with you in death." He turned away and stepped out the window. "Again, I thank you for your services."

* * *

"I'm sorry, Mikey, but I can't do this anymore."

Raph knelt in front of Mikey's altar in the dojo. Karai had already left the lair to catch the next flight to Japan, so it was just him and Chompy for now. The Ninja Turtle had spent the last two hours meditating, but for some reason, he could not connect with his youngest brother's spirit.

"I tried. I really did," he reached up to touch the Band-Aid on his cheek. "But they just won't listen to me. They can't forgive me for running away. It's looking pretty hopeless right now." He looked up at Mikey's picture and carefully picked it up. "You said you believe in me, and I really don't want to let you down. But I just don't know what to do anymore. I need your help, Little Brother."

The Mikey in the photo only continued to stare back at him. Raph knew full well that pictures couldn't talk, but he was hoping for some kind of connection with Mikey. Anything but the silence that continued to hang over the room.

Letting out a shaky sigh, Raph closed his eye and touched the glass with his forehead. "Please talk to me, Mikey. Tell me what to do. Give me a sign. Anything. Please...!"

"Um, excuse me?"

Raph broke out of his trance and jerked his head toward the source of the voice. Standing at the entrance to the dojo was Shadow.

"Shadow...?" Raph cleared his throat and turned to face her. "What are you doing here, kid? Shouldn't you be in school?"

"It's Saturday," Shadow said. "I don't have school."

"Oh, right."

"Look, I'm-I'm sorry to disturb you, but...well, I need to have a word with you."

"Okay, sure," Raph patted the spot next to him. "Have a seat."

The teenager walked into the dojo and sat down on the floor next to the Ninja Turtle. She looked at the photo of Michelangelo that was in his hands. "You really miss him, huh?" she softly asked.

Raph looked down at the photo with a saddened expression. "Every day. Usually, I'm able to communicate with him spiritually. But for some reason, today, I just can't...I dunno. I guess I'm a little stressed out. Anyway, what did you want to talk about?"

"Well," Shadow awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck, "you said you would help me with my anger management issues."

"Oh, yeah, that's right," Raph gently smiled at her. "So when would you like to begin? Monday?"

"Oh, um, whenever you're ready, I guess. But I actually came to talk to you about something else."

Raph raised an invisible eyebrow. "Oh?"

"You volunteered to help me, so I want to help you in return."

"Help?"

"Yeah. You need to take this Shredder guy down, right? But none of your brothers will help you, and you're pretty much on your own. So, what I'm trying to say is..."

She took a deep breath, and her expression became serious.

"I'm willing to train under you as a kunoichi."

 **End of "Mourning"**

 **Coming soon is the sequel, "Akari", which is Japanese for "light"! Will Raph succeed in bringing everyone back together? Or is it too late...?**

 **I'd like to thank everyone who has read, followed, and reviewed "Mourning". You guys are the reason I was able to finish this fanfic. I love you all :)**

 **A special thanks to BrightLotusMoon, BubblyShell22, Celeste38, Ninjas Say Hi, PopcornWolf10, RaphCallen2016, Rhodesincolumbus, StitcherBell, and Raigon.**

 **See you next time!**


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